


darkness will be rewritten

by princessironspider



Series: darkness exists [1]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Avengers - Freeform, Avengers Family, Avengers Tower, Clint Barton & Natasha Romanov Friendship, Domestic Avengers, F/M, Ironman 2, Kid Peter Parker, MCU reimagined, Natasha Romanov Feels, Natasha Romanov Is Not A Robot, Natasha Romanov Needs a Hug, Natasha and Tony married, Parent Tony Stark, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker is Tony Stark's Biological Child, Precious Peter Parker, Protective Natasha Romanov, Teen Peter Parker, Tony Feels, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, ironman - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-09
Updated: 2020-10-16
Packaged: 2021-01-25 23:17:21
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 24
Words: 104,794
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21364294
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/princessironspider/pseuds/princessironspider
Summary: Peter is Tony's biological child.Natasha Romanoff has been married to Tony Stark secretly for years.What would the movies be like if this were the case?
Relationships: Happy Hogan & Tony Stark, James "Rhodey" Rhodes & Tony Stark, Natasha Romanov/Tony Stark, Pepper Potts & Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Natasha Romanov, Peter Parker & Natasha Romanov & Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Series: darkness exists [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1834267
Comments: 400
Kudos: 1012
Collections: Avengers, Marvel





	1. Ironman

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This is my new story, I hope you guys like the idea. 
> 
> Just a note, I'm not good at writing action scenes so this will be more of the behind the scenes and some of the original scenes changed up, but I mostly cut out any action. 
> 
> Leave a comment and let me know what you think!

"You were supposed to be on the plane an hour and a half ago." Pepper's voice filtered in through the hallway. Tony was sitting on the floor listening to his six-year old read the beginning of the first Harry Potter book. 

"That's funny, I thought with it being my plane and all, that it would just wait for me to get there." Tony rebutted, barely taking his eyes off his kid. He watched as Peter jumped up to greet Pepper. 

"Auntie Pep! Look Daddy said I could read this while he's away!" Peter squealed, jumping up and down in front of the woman, showing off his book. Pepper's annoyance with him faded, and her face filled with amusement. 

"Oh wow, Pete that's great. But, Daddy needs to leave now, you think you could help me get him moving?" Pepper asked, lowering her voice into a conspiring whisper. Peter giggled and nodded his head. 

"Daddy, Peppa says you need to go now." Peter whispered as he walked over to Tony. Tony rolled his eyes at Pepper. 

"I know bud. How about this. I'll run upstairs and grab my bag, and you and Auntie Pep can meet me at the door to say goodbye?" Tony said, standing up and picking Peter up in the process. Peter nodded vigorously and Tony pressed a kiss to his head before putting him down and sending him after Pepper. He waited for them both to leave before heading upstairs to a secret door right next to his bedroom. 

"Hey, Tash?" he called as he shut the door behind him. He looked around the room, it was where he usually spent his time, but nobody but Peter knew that. And even though the kid was only 6, he knew not to mention this to anyone. His wife was a spy, for a super secret organization that he wasn't supposed to know about. And because of that, no one but him and Peter could know she existed. So he kept her hidden in her tower, for lack of better terms, whenever she was off mission. 

And while she wasn't Peter's biological mother, she was as good as, and Peter saw her that way. He was ripped from his thoughts by someone exiting the bathroom. 

"Hey, I thought you were supposed to be on the plane like an hour ago?" Natasha said as she walked up to him, letting him rest his hands on her hips. He scoffed. 

"Not you too. Pep's already been on me. I'm headed out right now, I just got to say goodbye to Pete. Plus I couldn't leave without seeing my lovely wife." He said, giving her a goofy grin. She rolled her eye, but her mouth was tipped up at the side, showing her amusement. 

"How long are you supposed to be gone this time?" She asked then, pulling out of their embrace to move around the room, continuing to get ready. 

"Three days. I'll be back as soon as I can. Did you get a mission?" Tony asked, hoping she's say no. She shook her head. 

"No I promised I wouldn't. I told Fury I was taking some me time. I was hoping you'd say that Peter was going to stay with a friend of his mother's for a couple days, so I could spend some time with him. I could use a disguise to pick him up?" Natasha then said, looking more vulnerable than she usually would. Tony felt his heart melt. 

"I think that could be arranged. Just make sure it's a good disguise, I don't want to worry about your cover being blown." Tony said, worry laced in his tone. Natasha gave him a soft smile, and nodded. 

"Tell Peter I'll be 'here' to pick him up in an hour." She said, starting to push him out the door, "Now you need to go. I'll see you in a couple days, любовь." She pressed a quick kiss to his lips before pushing him out of the door and closing it in his face. He scoffed, before grabbing his bag and heading downstairs. He could tell he took too long by the glare Pepper sent him as he approached. 

"Make the goodbyes quick, James is getting impatient." She reminded him. He nodded, deciding not to piss her off anymore. 

"Hey Petey, you remember that friend of your mommy's I was telling you about?" He asked the young boy who had ran up to greet him. Peter looked confused for a moment before he realized what Tony meant. He nodded excitedly. 

"Well she's going to be here in a little bit to pick you up. Your going to stay with her until Daddy gets back okay?" Tony asked, hoping Pepper wouldn't get too suspicious. But the smile that broke out on Peter's face at the idea of getting to spend time with his mother, made it all worth it. 

"Okay Daddy, I'll go pack!" Peter said, starting to run off, but Tony caught him before he could get too far. 

"Why don't you say goodbye to me first and then Auntie Pepper can help you pack?" Peter nodded. 

"Okay, bye Daddy! Love you lots! Don't be gone too long!" Peter said cutely, before placing a wet kiss on Tony's cheek. Tony's heart clenched at the thought of leaving his kid, even for such a short amount of time. 

"Love you too, baby. Be good while I'm gone okay? And if you're good we can go out for ice cream when I get home." Tony said, and watching Peter nod so hard he almost fell over. 

"Okay, Pete why don't you start packing and I'll be there to help you in a minute." Pepper spoke up, her voice soft despite the annoyance on her face. Peter saluted her jokingly, before rushing off. The second he was out of sight she turned on him.

"I thought I was watching him while you were gone?" she asked, leading him out the door to his line of cars. Tony winced. 

"Yeah, but a friend of Mary's called last night, begging to get some time with Peter, so I promised he could stay with her. It's only for three days." Tony said, sending her what he hoped was a reassuring smile. And since everyone assumed he was still heartbroken about Mary's death, they never questioned anything when he brought her up. So he wasn't surprised when Pepper got a thoughtful look on her face and just nodded. 

"Okay, I'll make sure he packs enough for when she arrives. What's her name?" Pepper said professionally, as Tony slid into his driver's seat. 

"Nicole." Tony answered, making a mental note to text Natasha his ridiculous answer for her cover name. He nodded once more at Pepper before speeding out of the garage. 

He wished he didn't rush his goodbyes to his family though, when he was sat in a cave, knowing he would probably never see them again.

"And you Stark?" Yinsen asked, pulling Tony out of his thoughts. He watched Yinsen carefully for a moment, and then deciding it wouldn't matter if he told him the truth, he answered honestly for the first time. 

"Yeah I have a wife, no one knows about her. And we have a kid, he's 6." Tony said, and then after a moment added something a lot more quietly, "And I'm probably never going to see them again." 

\---

"Mommy, do you have to wear that silly hair? You look funny." Peter's voice caused her to look up from the text that had just turned her world upside down. She tried to school her face into something casual, as not to worry Peter. She looked back down at the text from Coulson and then James Rhodes respectively.

_Stark has gone missing. I'm assuming you'd like to come in?_ -C  
_Something has come up, I'm heading over to pick up Peter. I'll explain when I get there._ -J.R. 

"Um, you know what baby...why don't you get your bags. Your Uncle Rhodey is coming to pick you up." Natasha said, only her spy training able to help her keep her voice even. 

"Mkay." Peter hummed, hoping down from the table and heading to his room in the safe house they had occupied as part of their cover. But knowing what she knew now, she decided it was time for a certain James Rhodes to figure out the truth. She walked to her room, quickly removing her disguise, before hearing a knock at the door. 

"Peter! I'm going to open the door, don't come out until I call you." Natasha said, peeking her head into his room and waiting for him to agree, before heading to the front door. 

When she opened the door, she could see the worry in her husband's best friends eyes, until he took in her appearance. She watched as his had twitched for the weapon she knew he had hidden on his hip. 

"You don't look anything like who Pepper described. You better explain real quick." He said coldly. She rolled her eyes and gestured for him to follow her inside. He followed her warily as she led him to the kitchen, before she rounded on him.

"I'm not actually a friend of Mary's. I'm Tony's wife." She said simply, watching as his eyes narrowed in suspicion. She brought up a holographic folder filled with evidence and gestured for him to go through it. He watched her warily from the corner of his eye as he did so. 

"I met Tony as a teenager, and we got married a little bit after Peter was born. He's not mine, he is still Mary's. Tony didn't tell you because I work for a secret organization, and if anyone found out I was tied to Tony or Peter, they could be targeted. Now I just got told by my handler that Tony's gone missing, so now it's your turn to explain." She said, her voice smooth despite the war raging beneath the surface. Rhodey regarded her silently for a moment. 

"I knew it. I suspected he was hiding something from me for a while, but I didn't expect it to be a super secret spy as a wife. Where's Peter?" Rhodey asked, surprising Natasha with how easy that was. But then again, he's been friends with Tony for years, so this must not have been that surprising.

"In his room, I told him to stay there, it's soundproof. Now tell me what you know." she demanded, he nodded, the worry from before leaking back into his eyes. 

"We were doing a routine weapons demonstration in Afghanistan, when our convoy was hit. There were several explosions and unfriendly fire. I couldn't find Tony afterwards, and his body hasn't been recovered. Everyone is saying he's dead, but I know he's not. I think someone took him. They are letting me lead a search and rescue, but I know Tony would have killed me if I didn't take care Peter first so that's why I'm here." She nodded.

"Is there someone he could stay with? Maybe Pepper? I want to help look for Tony, in my own way, of course." She told him. He nodded. 

"Pepper is prepared to look after him for however long it takes to find him. And we could use all the help we can get. I know you will probably go off the grid to do this, but if you find anything I could use, please find a way to send it my way." She nodded, her mind already preparing for her mission. 

"Peter!" she called, and a few seconds went by before they both heard the sound of pattering feet coming towards them. 

"Uncle Rhodey!" he called, bringing a smile to the older man's face. He rushed over to Rhodes and she watched as the man bent down to pull him into a hug. 

"Hey bug." Rhodey said, kneeling down in front of her son, who met her eyes over his head. He watched as Peter's small face turned confused. 

"Wait. You're not wearing your funny face." He said, taking good care not to call her mom in front of Rhodey. 

"It's okay Pete, I told Uncle Rhodey about Mommy and Daddy. But only he knows okay? It's still a secret." Natasha said, kneeling down next to Rhodes to address her son. 

"Okay. Am I going with Uncle Rhodey?" Peter then asked, looking between the two. Natasha nodded. 

"Yeah, baby. Mom's got to go to work, and Daddy has to be gone a little longer than he said. You are going to go stay with your Aunt Pepper." She tried to put as much calm into her voice as she could. She didn't want to let Peter in on something being wrong until they absolutely had to. 

"Why don't you get your stuff, bug. And then we will head out." Rhodes said, and they both stood up as they watched Peter skip out of the room. 

"I don't want to tell him anything until we know for sure either way. And Rhodes. Please don't tell anyone else about this. The more people that know, the more risk my family is under." Natasha said quietly, in case Peter came back. Rhodes nodded seriously, before Peter returned. 

Right before Rhodes and Peter headed out the door, the man turned, hand in Peter's small one. 

"I never did get your real name." He said. She gave him a smirk. 

"Natasha." she answered. He nodded thoughtfully. 

"Well, Natasha if you find anything send it my way yeah?" he asked. She nodded and closed the door after them. As soon as she closed the door, she let herself fall apart for approximately five minutes, before she suited up and went searching for answers. 

And three months later, she was the one who sent the anonymous tip to Rhodes that helped them locate her husband. 

\---

"I know about Natasha, Tones." Rhodey's voice said from beside him. It was said so quietly, he was almost sure he had missed it. 

"How?" he asked simply, hoping his wife's cover was still safe, he didn't know if he could handle any more stress. 

"She told me, when I went to get Peter, when we couldn't find you." Rhodey answered, and Tony felt himself relax, "She was the one who found you. She sent me an anonymous tip. She seems great, Tones." his friend said gently. He turned to look at the genuine expression on his best friends face, and searched for any hint of resentment or anger. And surprisingly, he found none. 

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you...it's just..." he trailed off, not being able to find an excuse for the years of secrecy. 

"I know. You did it to protect them. I get it. I haven't told anyone, not even Pepper. Your secret is safe with me." Rhodey said, Tony nodded but remained silent. He couldn't get his family out of his head, longing for the moment he could hold them in his arms.

"Mr. Stark, we have landed." A voice said to his right. He nodded and allowed Rhodey to help him stand up, and even let him walk him down the ramp. But the second he crossed onto the asphalt he became the Tony Stark he knew they would want to see. He could feel Rhodey tense up beside him, already knowing what he was doing. He sent his friend a reassuring smile, before walking to greet Pepper. 

"Your eyes are red. Few tears for your long lost boss?" he stated, playing on his charm. 

"Tears of joy. I hate job hunting." she responded, and he relaxed. 

"Yeah, vacation's over." he finished, earning himself an eye roll from the woman. They both headed for the car, Tony allowing himself to stop and give Happy a nice hug before he got in. 

"Where to, sir?" Happy asked after he settled in the front seat. Tony opened his mouth to answer, but Pepper beat him to it. 

"Take us to the hospital, please Happy."

"No." Tony interrupted. 

"No? Tony, you have to go to the hospital." Pepper responded exasperatingly. 

"No, is the complete answer." Tony interjected over her. She sent him an annoyed look. 

"The doctor has to look at you." She tried one last time to convince him. 

"I don't have to do anything. I've been in captivity for three months. There are two things I want to do. I want an American cheeseburger, and the other is to hug my son. But first, I want you to call for a press conference, now." Tony responded, his tone giving no room for argument. Pepper furrowed her eyebrows at him.

"Call for a press conference?" she asked, disbelief and confusion evident in her voice. 

"Yeah." he responded simply, reaching into his pocket to pull out his phone. 

"What on earth for?" she then asked, but he ignored her, tired of the third degree. 

"Hogan, drive. Cheeseburger first." He ordered, and they both finally grew quiet. He scrolled through his phone, trying to remember what name he had saved Natasha's information under. When he had finally found it, he clicked on it quickly, typing out a quick message. 

_I'm home, and I'm okay. Thanks for looking for me. I'll see you at home soon, I have something I need to do._

He put the phone back in his pocket, knowing Natasha wouldn't say anything back. 

"Who could you have possibly been texting." Pepper asked, suspicion lacing her voice. Tony rolled his eyes and let out a tired breath as Happy passed back a bag filled with cheeseburgers. He unwrapped one quickly and stuffed his face with it, letting out a sigh with how delicious it was. 

"Old friend." he responded, watching as Pepper's face filled with disgust as he talked with his mouth full. She rolled her eyes, turning back to her work. 

\---

Hours later he walked into his seemingly empty house. 

"Really? Ending the weapons manufacturing. That's a big move." a voice spoke from the living room. He walked further into the room and saw Rhodey sitting on the couch with Peter fast asleep in his lap. He walked over and sat down tiredly on the couch next to them, careful not to jostle his son. 

"Yeah. I know. You can yell at me later. I just want to hang with Peter...and find Nat." Tony said, feeling weird mentioning his wife to his friend, after having to keep it a secret for so long. Rhodey nodded, and eased himself out from under Peter, who didn't stir. 

"She went upstairs, in case you had brought Pepper with you. I'll leave you guys alone. I'm going to come check on you tomorrow okay?" Rhodey said, quietly. Tony just nodded, out of energy from the excitement of the day...and the trauma of the last three months. Rhodey gave his shoulder a squeeze before exiting. 

Tony sat there silently for a few minutes, content in watching his son sleep. He watched as Peter's nose scrunched up in his sleep, and he let his first genuine smile in a while grace his face. 

"He missed you a lot, so I've been told. I was in and out." His shoulders slumped at the familiar voice that spoke up behind him. He let out a sigh of relief before spinning to find his wife sitting next to him on the couch. 

"I missed him too. I missed you. I thou-I thought I was never going to see you guys again." Tony said, voice breaking. He took in a few rattled breaths, before Natasha gathered him in her arms, and he finally let himself go. He sat there silently sobbing, for who knows how long, his wife whispering soft words while running her fingers through his hair, before he finally slumped further into her lap in exhaustion.   
  
"Hey, why don't you wake up Peter? Huh? Just hold him for a bit, and then we can all have a sleepover in our room tonight yeah?" his wife's soft melodic voice swept over him, and he nodded, finally extracting himself. She gave him a kiss on the forehead, and he noticed her eyes were a little red too. He gave her hand one last squeeze before she headed to their room, leaving him to wake Peter. 

He turned to look at his son, and gently shook his shoulder. He watched as Peter's face scrunched, before his eyes slowly opened. It took a while for him to register who woke him up, but the second he did, he jolted up. 

"DADDY!" he yelled, launching himself into Tony's already outstretched arms. 

"Yeah baby. Daddy's home." he whispered, feeling grateful he was able to have the feeling of his kid in his arms again, holding him tighter than necessary. 

"You were gone sooo long. But I'm glad you're home. Is Mommy back too?" Peter asked, pulling away after a moment. It was too soon for Tony's liking, but he let it happen. He gave Peter a kiss on his nose, causing the boy to giggle before he answered. 

"Yeah, bud. She's upstairs waiting for us. We are going to have a sleepover." Tony said, standing up, bringing Peter with him. He knew logically his son was a little too old to be carried around, but he couldn't help it. 

"No way! That's so cool!" Peter said, before his attention was drawn to the arc reactor in Tony's chest. 

"Daddy? Why do you have a light in your chest?" Peter asked, and Tony stiffened a bit as he walked into their secret bedroom. Natasha was sitting on the bed, and had heard the question, because she was now sitting up straight, her eyes trained on his chest. 

"It's a battery to help Daddy's heart." Tony answered, helping Peter get comfortable in their bed. Peter seemed to accept this answer, snuggling in between the two adults, before quickly falling back asleep. 

"A battery?" Natasha's whisper made him look up from where he was watching Peter. He gave her a smile, that was more like a grimace. 

"Shrapnel. It's an arc reactor, it's keeping the shrapnel from reaching my heart. It's okay, I'm okay." He assured her, giving her a kiss over Peter. She nodded before settling down, reaching out a hand to hold his, both of them facing each other. 

"I'm so glad you're alive, любовь." Natasha whispered, when Tony was on the edge of sleep. He just hummed in response, already losing the battle of consciousness, as she pressed a kiss into his hand. He drifted off into the first and last dreamless sleep he would have in a while. 

\---

"Are those bullet holes?" an incredulous voice spoke out, catching him off guard. He turned to the side to see Natasha staring at him incredulously. 

"Uh..let's face it. This is not the worst thing you've caught me doing." Tony replied, hoping his humor would diffuse the situation. But naturally with his luck the red head just got angrier. 

"Anthony Edward Stark, you have some explaining to do." Natasha replied, her face giving away nothing, but her tone told a different story.

Once he finally got rid of the suit, he stepped down to stand in front of his wife. 

"Uh...I assume Coulson briefed you on how I escaped?" Tony chose to start at the beginning. Natasha nodded, lips thinning into a straight line. He could see the worry and anger in her eyes, despite her trying to hide it. 

"Well, um I found out that Obie's been dealing under the table...the uh the night of the charity event? And I was already working on another suit by then...and now I can use it to get rid of my weapons. All of them. I need to make sure they are all gone." He tried to defend his actions, the ones he had done without telling Natasha, but he figured it was in vain. 

He watched as several emotions played through Natasha's eyes. Normally she would be able to hide what she was feeling, from her face, from her eyes, no one could ever read her. But it had taken years of marriage for him to learn her tells, and for her to let her guard down around him long enough to let him see. 

He watched as the fire lit behind her eyes, and he knew he was in for a lecture. 

"You're crazy. You've lost your mind. I know why you built the first one, Tony. It brought you back to us. Back to me...back to our _son_. What about _Peter_, Tony? Did you think of him? Huh? He is already at risk if anyone ever finds out about me...and you just what? You want to become a super hero so people can use him against you for revenge? Is that what you want? Because if that's what you want then you have gone crazy...and I don't know if I like this person you're choosing to be." Natasha was fuming, he could feel the emotion coming off her in waves.

He didn't dare move closer to her as she started pacing, sending him venomous looks as she said her piece. He knew she needed to get this out, before she would even listen to him at all. 

As he watched her pace, he debated in his head what he really wanted. Did he want to endanger Peter when they found out he was tied to him? The world didn't know about Peter yet...but they would figure out eventually. Did he want to put him in danger? And not to mention Natasha, he knew she could handle herself, but if she ever got hurt because of him he'd never forgive himself.

But if he became this person, if he used this armor he built, he could protect them. He could make sure no one, especially not his family, could be hurt because of him again. And at that moment he made his decision, so he chose his next words very carefully. 

"I shouldn't be alive. If not for a reason. I'm not crazy, Tasha. I just finally know...what I have to do. And I know in my heart that it's right. I want to be able to protect you and Peter. I want to protect those I couldn't when all I did was make weapons. Tash...this is what I need to do." he said, voice quiet and pleading. He kept his eyes toward the ground, so as not to lose his nerve by looking in her eyes. There was a small brief moment of silence, before he heard her approach him. Soon he felt her hand tilt his chin up, and his brown eyes met her striking green ones. 

"You're all I have you know? You and Peter? You guys are it for me. I don't want either of you in harms way." She took a deep breath, and Tony prepared himself for her rejection, "But I understand why you have to do it. I get it. If this is what you need to do, then I support you." she finished in a whisper, touching their foreheads together. He let out a sigh of relief. 

"I love you, Tasha." He stated. She gave him the most beautiful smile, before pressing a kiss to his lips. 

"Okay. I'm going to go get Peter, and take him to Ben and May's until this Obadiah thing blows over okay? I don't want him to have to hear all of the fighting that I'm sure will inevitably occur if what you say he's doing is true." Natasha said, after she pulled away a few moments later. Tony nodded. 

"Okay. Now don't do anything stupid while I'm gone." She said, giving him a smirk, before taking the secret elevator up to their floor. As soon as she left he heard the clacking of heels that signaled Pepper's arrival. 

"Hey you mind if I send you on an errand?" he asked her, right as she walked in. And thus started the most dramatic night in his life, next to being kidnapped by a terrorist organization, that is.   
\---

"I thought I told you not to do anything stupid while I was gone." Natasha said the second he got home from the press conference. She was sitting on the couch in their private room, a slumbering Peter on her lap. 

"I thought you were taking him to Ben and May's?" Tony asked her, choosing to deflect the oncoming interrogation for a few minutes. She raised a perfectly raised eyebrow at his deflection, before continuing. 

"Well, by the time I dropped him off and got back here, everything was already over with. I'm sad I missed all the fireworks. I went back to pick him up just in time to catch the tail end of your press conference. I am Ironman? Really?" She asked him, sarcasm dripping from her words. Tony winced slightly before picking Peter up gently, careful not to wake him up. 

He stayed silent as he walked Peter over to their king sized bed, and tucked him in. He sat down next to his son, and silently watched him sleep for a few moments, before his wife cleared her throat behind him. 

"I know. I didn't know sending Pepper to hack into Obie's files would start that shit show. And by then it was too late to call you. I'm glad you were with Peter though." Tony said quietly, still not taking his eyes off his son's sleeping form. 

"And what about Ironman? Are you sure about this?" She spoke up then, joining him on the bed, her eyes also falling onto their child. She ran her hand through Peter's bangs gently, as he answered. 

"Yeah. It's the only way to make sure I can keep you guys safe." Tony said. Natasha nodded beside him, before grabbing his hand and pulling him up to face her. 

"You know Nick is going to try and recruit you." She said next, joining their foreheads together. 

"Tell your boss that I don't want to join his super-secret boy band." Tony rebutted, earning a laugh from his wife, before she pressed a kiss to his lips. 

\-----

TONY STARK WILL RETURN


	2. Ironman 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ironman 2!!
> 
> Also just know that Ironman 2 takes place 6 months after Ironman. But then after that the timeline gets a little shaky so I'm just gonna make my own. So yeah. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy!

"You do it." He retorts, after landing back on his feet. Pepper gives him an incredulous look. 

"I do what?" she snaps back. 

"Excellent idea. I just figured this out. You run the company." He said, the decision finalizing in his mind. It made sense, he needed a successor, who better than Pepper?

"Yeah, I’m trying to run the company." Pepper says with an eye roll. He felt frustration bubble up inside at her oblivious response, signalling the upcoming argument. They started speaking over each other. 

"Pepper, I need you to run the company-"

"-You will not give me the information…"

"I’m not asking you to try-"

"-in order to-"

"I’m asking you to physically do it. I need you to do it."

"I am trying to do it."

"Pepper, you’re not listening to me!" he shouted, regretting it instantly at the look on her face. 

"No, you are not listening to me." her voice reaching a high volume in her annoyance. 

"I’m trying to make you CEO. Why won’t you let me?" he says simply, sounding a bit like a petulant child. 

"Have you been drinking?" she asked, narrowing her eyes to study him.

"Chlorophyll," he deflected quickly before continuing. 

"I hereby irrevocably appoint you chairman and CEO of Stark Industries effective immediately. Yeah, done deal. Okay? I’ve actually given this a fair amount of thought, believe it or not." He said, as DUM-E brought over some champagne. 

"Doing a bit of headhunting, so to speak, trying to figure out who a worthy successor would be. And then I realized it’s you. It’s always been you. I thought there’d be a legal issue, but actually I’m capable of appointing my successor. My successor being you. Congratulations? Take it, just take it." He said, handing her a glass. She looked speechlessly at him for a few moments. 

"I don’t know what to think." she said, voice quiet. 

"Don’t think, drink. There you go." he said, with a press smile on his face, as they clinked glasses. 

He knew this was the right thing to do, but he felt guilty not telling anyone the true reason why he was doing this.  
\---

"You want to explain to me what's going on with your husband?" Nick asked, as she walked into his office. She narrowed her eyes a bit, but other than that she didn't let on that she didn't know what he was talking about. 

"Is this about him rejecting the Avengers?" she asked coolly, taking a seat in front of his desk. 

"No. This is about him giving his company away." Nick replied coolly, his eyebrows raised, showing her he knew something she didn't. 

"What? To who?" She asked, dropping her act for legitimate concern.

"His assistant apparently. I don't know why he would do such a thing, but I figured I'd send in an agent to be a shadow. Follow him around and see what we can find out." Nick said. Natasha chose to ignore the fact that Tony was giving his company to Pepper, if he was going to give it to anyone it would make sense it would be her. 

"What are you thinking you are going to find out?" She asked defensively. She knew if he sent in a shadow, then SHIELD would find out about both her and Peter, and she wasn't okay with that. 

"Who knows. But ever since his little announcement 6 months ago, he's become my problem. If anything is going on, I need to know about it." Nick stated then, crossing his arms. Natasha stared him down silently, before coming to her decision. If anyone could find out what was going on without putting her family in danger, it was her.

"Okay. Send me." she stated. Nick nodded once, like he had expected that very thing to come out of her mouth.   
\---

"The notary’s here! Can you please come sign the transfer paperwork?" Pepper called, breaking his concentration as he was boxing Happy. 

"I’m on Happy's time." In his distraction he accidentally hit his friend in the nose. "Sorry." 

"What the hell was that?" Happy asked incredulously. Tony rolled his eyes at his dramatics. 

"It’s called mixed martial arts. It’s been around for three weeks." He joked, watching Happy roll his eyes in return at his humor. 

"It’s called dirty boxing, there’s nothing new about it." Happy stated with annoyance. 

"All right, put them up. Come on." Tony said, before the sound of heels made both of their heads turn. He had to quickly school his surprised expression at seeing his wife walk in, with no disguise. He met her eyes briefly, but found nothing but professionalism in them, so he figured he needed to keep his act up, as if she was a stranger. 

"I promise this is the only time I will ask you to sign over your company." Pepper said, with a bit of smugness. After her initial shock, she had told Tony how grateful and excited she was for this opportunity. And how she was going to make the company better, but that was neither her nor there. 

"I need you to initial each box." He heard Natasha say quietly to Pepper, before Pepper obliged. His attention was called away when Happy tapped him lightly on the back on his head with his glove. 

"Lesson one. Never take your eye off…" He didn't let Happy finish, as he sent a kick to his padding, sending him to the corner. He could hear Happy grumble in annoyance, but he needed his full attention on figuring out why his wife was here, without giving away her cover. Which was apparently a Stark Industries employee. 

"That’s it. I’m done. What’s your name lady?" he decided then, to just play on the traditional playboy Tony Stark act. He hoped that would be enough to fool Pepper and Happy, while he could also try and get some kind of explanation. 

"Rushman. Natalie Rushman." his wife responded, and he hadn't heard this cover before, so she was here for something new. 

"Front and center. Come into the church." He said, deciding to have a bit of fun with her, when he knew she couldn't fight back. He held up the ropes of the ring for her while Pepper let out a sigh. 

"No. You’re seriously not gonna ask…" she said, sounding mortified with Tony's behavior. Which was good, it meant that she was buying it. 

"If it pleases the court, which it does." Tony insisted, keeping his aloof attitude. He heard Happy snort behind him. 

"It’s no problem." she assured Pepper, sounding unbothered. But Tony knew he was getting on her nerves. 

"I’m sorry. He’s very eccentric." Pepper said, sounding apologetic. It was working. 

He grabbed his water bottle, and took a giant swig as he blatantly stared at his wife as she entered the ring. He looked her up and down for a minute, knowing it would annoy her, but it would keep up with his playboy image.

"Can you give her a lesson?" Tony asked, turning to Happy. This was going to be fun. 

"No problem." Happy said. 

"Pepper." He called, stepping out of the ring. 

"What?" Pepper said, not looking up from her phone as he sat down next to her. 

"Who is she?" he asked simply. He heard her let out an annoyed huff. 

"She is from legal. And she is potentially a very expensive sexual harassment lawsuit if you keep ogling her like that." Pepper reprimanded him. He would normally feel bad, but seeing as it was his wife, he figured it was fine. Plus it protected her cover and his, if Pepper just thought he was going back to his playboy ways. 

"I need a new assistant, boss." he said, a new idea springing up in the back of his mind. 

"Yes, and I’ve got three excellent potential candidates. They’re lined up and ready to meet you." Pepper said, he could tell she disapproved of where his mind was going. 

"I don’t have time to meet. I need someone now. I feel like it’s her." he said. 

"No it’s not." She answered, Tony brought up a holographic display on the table next to him, while tuning into what was going on in the ring. 

"You ever boxed before?" Happy was asking Natasha. 

"I have, yes." was her reply. And Tony had to force himself not to laugh. She had definitely done more than boxing before. 

"What, like, the Tae Bo? Booty Boot Camp? Crunch? Something like that?" Happy replied, and Tony internally cringed, already knowing the look that was probably gracing his wife's face. He decided to intervene. 

"How do I spell your name, Natalie?" He called. He saw her face turn slightly to him, admiring how well she was acting. He almost believed she had no idea who he was personally. 

"R-U-S-H-M-A-N." she spelled and he nodded, typing the name into his database. He wanted to know more about the cover she had come up with. 

"What, are you gonna google her now?" Pepper asked impatiently. 

"I thought I was ogling her." he retorted. "Wow. Very, very impressive individual." he said interestingly, as he scrolled through her information. 

"You’re so predictable, you know that?" That's exactly what he wanted her to think. 

"She’s fluent in French, Italian, Russian, Latin. Who speaks Latin?" he said instead, ignoring her comment. He already knew all of this information, but Pepper didn't know this. 

"No one speaks Latin." Pepper informed him. 

"No one speaks Latin?" he repeated, acting ignorant. 

"It’s a dead language. You can read Latin or you can write Latin, but you can’t speak Latin." She informed. But he was quickly distracted by the model pictures that came up next. He struggled to breathe at some of the photos of his wife. 

"Did you model in Tokyo? ‘Cause she modeled in Tokyo." He said, when he finally managed to get some breath. 

"Well…" she responded, sounding slightly bitter. He could sense his wife's eyes on him as he scrolled through her pictures. 

"I need her. She’s got everything that I need." his words more truthful than Pepper needed to know.

"Rule number one, never take your eyes off your opponent." he faintly heard Happy say to his wife, he barely looked over when he saw his wife perform her signature move, taking Happy to the ground. He couldn't hide his snort in amusement and subsequent hum of amazement. 

"Oh, my God! Happy." Pepper squealed, jumping up. 

"That’s what I’m talking about." a little pride filling his voice, not enough for his friends to pick up on, but enough that his wife would. 

"I just slipped." Happy claimed then.

"You did?" Tony laughed, watching as Natasha started to make her way out of the ring, composed as ever. 

"Yeah." Happy said weakly. 

"Looks like a TKO to me." Tony joked, ringing the bell on the corner of the ring. 

"Just… I need your impression." Natasha asked him, coming up to him, a little too close. She made her voice sound a little hesitant, impressing Tony with her act. 

"You have a quiet reserve. I don’t know, you have an old soul." Tony joked, staring deeply into his wife's eyes, searching for answers. 

"I meant your fingerprint." She replies smoothly, completely disregarding his questioning stare. He nodded, shaking off his hurt quickly. 

"Right." he said professionally, pressing his thumb into the ink pad. 

"So, how are we doing?" Pepper asked, walking over. 

"Great. Just wrapping up here. Hey. You’re the boss." Tony said, focusing his attention on Pepper, rather than his wife. He really wasn't liking having her in the room, pretending they don't know each other. 

"Will that be all, Mr Stark?" his wife addressed him, with a professional tone. 

"No." Tony said, not wanting her to leave. But Pepper had other ideas.

"Yes, that will be all, Ms. Rushman. Thank you very much." He watched as his wife nodded, before she walked out. He watched as she went before turning to Pepper, determined to keep his act up. 

"I want one." he knew if she heard this, it would be the final touch he needed for her to believe his act. 

"No." She responded with an eye roll. Mission accomplished.   
\---

"Do you really have to go Daddy?" Peter asked, sitting on top of Tony's suitcase. Tony poked him in the side a couple times to make him giggle before zipping up his suitcase.

"Yes, Auntie Pepper said we have to go." he answered his son, checking his watch. He was only waiting on one thing. 

"We? Does that mean Mommy is going to?" Peter asked, playing with Tony's fingers. Tony let out a sigh. 

"Yeah if I can convince her to. You are going to go stay with Uncle Eye-patch." Tony said. It had taken him a lot of convincing for Fury to take Peter for a couple days. He would normally just leave him with Mary's brother and sister in law, but he needed Peter to be safe. And being with the biggest spy in the world, surrounded by his minions, was the safest he could get. 

"Oooooh Uncle Eye-patch is cool. He's cranky sometimes but he gives me candy, and lets me pet his cat." Peter said, getting distracted by the toys sitting in front of him. Tony did a double take at his sons words, raising his eyebrows in amusement, before the door opened behind him. 

"Why is Fury watching our kid for a few days?" his wife asked him, he kept his back to her so he wouldn't lose his nerve. 

"I don't know, why is my wife pretending to work at my company?" he retorted, letting all of his hurt from earlier leak into his voice. He heard her sigh behind him. 

"Hey, Peter baby, why don't you go make sure all your stuff is packed in your room okay?" Natasha said quietly, pressing a kiss to Peter's forehead. Tony stayed facing the bed, shoulders tight. 

"Okay, Mommy." Peter chirped hopping off the bed and racing off. 

"Keep an eye on him, J." Tony choked out, voice hard. 

"Always, sir." JARVIS replied, before silence fell upon the room. 

"Why don't we start with you signing your company to Pepper?" Natasha said quietly, sitting down on the bed next to where he was standing. She patted the spot next to her gently. But Tony kept his eyes staring resolutely ahead, refusing to succumb to her peace offering. 

"Now that I'm Ironman, I needed to make sure the company is taken care of in case anything happens to me. I have been thinking about it since Afghanistan, so it just seemed like a good idea." He argued, telling the partial truth. He had thought that he should have someone as backup in case another thing like Afghanistan happened, but he didn't tell her the biggest reason of all. That he was dying. He couldn't, it would just hurt her more to know. It was better this way. 

"Okay. Fair." She relented, and Tony let out a scoff. 

"Not everything I do is reckless you know?" He spat bitterly, and he heard her snap her jaw shut. 

"I never said that." she argued, voice quiet, trying to console him. 

"Oh? Then why is my own wife spying on me?" He said, finally rounding on her, anger in his eyes. She leaned back a little, his anger taking her by surprise. 

"Fury wanted to send in one of his SHIELD agents to shadow you. To keep an eye on you. I convinced him to send me, so we didn't have to worry about our cover being blown." She replied simply, with a nonchalant shrug. Tony took a step back, and tapped his fingers on his arc reactor. It was a nervous habit he picked up on. 

"You know how I'm okay with you being a spy, but we agreed you would keep them away from us, from me and Peter." Tony said, taking a few more steps back, the rhythm he was tapping picking up speed. 

Natasha sighed, but stayed where she was, sitting on the edge of the bed leaning towards him. 

"I know, that's why I had him send me. I'm just a floater. That's all." Natasha said, holding her hands up. This didn't make him feel any better, he didn't want her to figure out what was going on. And if he didn't know where she was at all times...

"Be my assistant, then." Tony blurted, idea forming in his head. If she pretended to be his assistant, then he could control where she was and when, he could keep her from finding out. He watched as she narrowed her eyes at him.

"Why?" she asked, suspiciously. 

"Because...if I have to be spied on, I'd like to have some control over it." Tony defended, she stared at him for a few moments, before nodding. 

"Okay, I guess that means I need to pack for Monaco?" she asked standing up. He gave her a curt nod, and she looked like she wanted to say more before she just nodded, and left the room. 

"Okay! I'm ready to go with Uncle Eye-patch!" Peter squealed, breaking Tony out of his thoughts. He turned to see Peter struggling to roll his suitcase and carry his small backpack at the same time. Tony let out a small laugh, before going to help out. 

"Yeah? Well Uncle Eye-patch should be here any minute." Tony replied, taking the two bags and ruffling his son's hair. 

"Sir, Director Fury has just arrived." JARVIS spoke up, and he watched as Peter cheered. 

"J, let Nat know, so she can come say goodbye to Pete." Tony said, grabbing Peter's hand and leading him down the hallway. 

"Certainly, sir." 

Once they reached the living room, Peter dropped his hand and ran to the tall man standing by the couch. 

"Uncle Eye-patch!" Peter squealed, launching himself into his arms. Fury caught him quickly and gave Peter a rare smile. 

"Hey, kid." he said, before looking up to Tony. 

"I hope you didn't give my agent a hard time, Stark." Fury said, and before Tony could answer a voice spoke up from behind him. 

"No more than usual, sir." Natasha said coming to stand beside him, he tried to contain his flinch, still hurt from her breaking his trust. She seemed to notice, though, moving away from him quickly to take Peter from Fury's arms. 

"Okay Peanut, you be good for your uncle okay?" She said, giving him a kiss on the cheek. 

"Yes, Mama." Peter said dutifully, before hopping down and running over to Tony. Tony knelt down to meet him at eye level. 

"Be good for Mama, Daddy." Peter said, earning a laugh from everyone in the room. 

"Yes, sir." Tony said, tickling Peter in the side, smiling at the sound of his son's happiness. 

"Be good, bug." Tony said, kissing his head. Tony stood up straighter and offered Fury his hand. Fury took it and gave it a shake. 

"Thanks for taking him." Tony said. Fury gave him a nod, before leading Peter out of the house. 

"Our flight leaves in an hour. Pepper is already on her way." Natasha said, before disappearing again. Tony let out a deep sigh.   
\---  
"What is that?" Natasha asked as he placed the plate down on the tray between them. They were on their way back from Monaco, Pepper had taken a separate plane, still pissed at Tony for the racetrack...and hiring Natasha, leaving the married couple alone.

"This is your in-flight meal." Tony said, taking the lid off and revealing a half-burnt omelet. Natasha gave him a weird look. 

"Did you just make that?" she asked, confused. Tony nodded. 

"Yeah. Where do you think I’ve been for three hours?" he asked, and she shook her head. It got quiet for a moment, before she spoke again. 

"Tony, what are you not telling me?" she asked softly. Tony let out a sigh. 

"I don’t want to go home. At all. Let’s cancel my birthday party and...We’re in Europe. Let’s go to Venice, Cipriani. Remember?" Tony said, rambling to keep from having to tell her the actual truth. 

"Oh, yes." She said with a snort. 

"It’s a great place to be...healthy." Tony offered. Natasha stared at him with a calculating look in her eyes. 

"I don’t think this is the right time. We’re in kind of a mess." she replied, referring the inevitable backlash from what happened on the race track. 

"Yeah, but maybe that’s why it’s the best time. ‘Cause then we can..." Tony trailed off, not knowing what else to say. 

"We need to get back. You need to take care of Peter, and I'm sure I will have plenty fires to put out as your assistant." Natasha said, still giving him a calculating gaze. 

"We can take a family vacation." Tony replied desperately. 

"A vacation? Tony..." Natasha said, confused. 

"Just a ride. Well, I’m just saying, to recharge our batteries and figure it all out." He said, desperately wanting her to agree. He just wanted to run away, to not have to think about the fact that soon he will never see his wife and son again. 

"Not everybody runs on batteries Tony." she says gently, and Tony gives up. He just nods, and turns his attention to the window, ignoring her questioning looks. 

\---  
He had just finished researching the identity of his newest villain, when he got sidetracked by some old drawings of Peter's he had found. He sat there staring at the drawings, thinking about how Peter was going to take his death, when he heard someone enter the lab behind him. 

"Tony, you gotta get upstairs and get on top of this situation right now. Listen. I’ve been on the phone with the National Guard all day, trying to talk them out of rolling tanks up the PCH, knocking down your front door and taking these. They’re gonna take your suits, Tony, okay? They’re sick of the games. You said nobody else would possess this technology for 20 years. Well, guess what? Somebody else had it yesterday. It’s not theoretical anymore. Are you listening to me? Are you okay?" He was jarred from his spiraling thoughts by a firm grip on his shoulder. He was aware of the tears in his eyes as he turned to his friend. He nodded his head, and started to get out of the car. 

"Let’s go." He said, before stumbling as he shut the door, feeling lightheaded. He heard Rhodey's hurried footsteps as he rushed over to Tony. 

"Hey, man. Hey, hey! You all right?" Rhodey asked, but Tony waved him off. 

"Yeah, I should get to my desk." Tony said, as Rhodey took on half of his weight. "See that cigar box?" he asked, landing hard in his chair. 

"Yeah." Rhodey said, opening it, revealing the palladium. 

"It’s palladium." Tony said, after getting a questioning look from his friend. He turned away slightly to remove his arc reactor, the familiar pressure in his chest making itself known. 

"Is that supposed to be smoking?" Rhodey asked then, as Tony passed him the arc reactor. 

"If you must know, it’s neutron damage. It’s from the reactor wall." Tony choked out, wishing Rhodey would stop asking questions so he could get it back in his chest, the pressure becoming more and more uncomfortable. 

"You had this in your body? And how about the high-tech crossword puzzle on your neck?" Rhodey asked, handing him back his arc reactor. Tony let out a sigh of relief as he replaced it. 

"Road rash. Thank you." he said, taking a drink of the stuff keeping him alive. "What are you looking at?" Tony asked, feeling his friend's gaze burning his back. 

"I’m looking at you. You wanna do this whole lone gunslinger act and it’s unnecessary. You don’t have to do this alone." Rhodey replied. 

"You know, I wish I could believe that. I really do. But you’ve gotta trust me. Contrary to popular belief, I know exactly what I’m doing." Tony responded, hearing Rhodey give a small snort. 

"Well you could at least spend time with your kid, while you do whatever it is you do. He keeps telling me how you never come out of the lab. And Nat, she seems tired, is everything okay with you two?" Tony stiffened at the mention of his wife and son. 

"Yeah, um we had an argument a couple of days ago. It will be okay. And I'll go spend time with Peter in a bit, I got some work to do first." Tony said, and Rhodey sent him a thoughtful look, before leaving. 

Tony let out a shaky sigh, trying to remind himself of why he was doing this. Why he was pushing everyone away. If they hated him, it would hurt less when he died. He just didn't want them to hurt.   
\---  
"I'm cancelling the party. I don't...I don't want to have to live up to the playboy act...not tonight." Tony said as soon as he heard her walk in. He heard her steps falter a bit before she came and perched on the arm of the chair he was occupying. 

"That's probably for the best." She said, sounding surprised. Tony gave a curt nod. "So how are we going to celebrate your birthday then?" she asked then. Tony looked up and met her eyes. 

"Just you, and Pete. Just family." He said, and she nodded, giving him her first genuine smile since this entire thing started. She grabbed his had and walked them up to Peter's room, settling in for an old fashioned movie night. Tony found himself dozing halfway through, feeling content being surrounded by family. 

He must have fell asleep for longer than he thought, because when he jerked awake next, the TV was off and Peter was asleep next to him. He looked around, but his wife was nowhere to be seen. He felt concern bubble up inside him, until he saw the note sitting next to Peter. 

_Fury called. I had to go in. -Nat_

Tony sighed, before getting up gently, taking time to re-tuck Peter in before heading to the living room. He gave a little jump at the figure sitting on the couch. It was Rhodey, and he had a sort of chagrined look on his face. 

"They sent you to take the suit huh?" Tony said, taking a seat across from his friend. Rhodey gave him a tight smile. 

"Yeah. I don't want to, Tones. I'm sorry." Rhodey said standing up. Tony nodded.

"It's fine. Take the silver one." Tony said, knowing full and well it was already coded for Rhodey to take. Rhodey gave him a sad nod, before heading in the direction of the lab. Tony just sighed and headed to the bar, drinking his sorrow into oblivion.   
\---  
The next morning he found himself hungover, eating donuts, while sitting in a giant doughnut. He had dropped Peter off with Pepper that morning, and decided he needed some junk food to nurse his hangover. 

"Sir! I’m gonna have to ask you to exit the doughnut." A familiar voice called from the ground. Tony turned and stared at Fury over his sunglasses. He rolled his eyes, but followed the man inside. Once they were sitting at a table, Tony spoke up. 

"I told you I don’t wanna join your super-secret boy band." Tony said, earning a snort from Fury. 

"No, no, no. See, I remember, you do everything yourself. How’s that working out for you?" Fury responded sarcastically. Tony rolled his eyes and sent the older man a glare. 

"It’s… It’s… It’s… I’m sorry. I don’t wanna get off on the wrong foot. Do I look at the patch or the eye? Honestly I’m a bit hung over. I’m not sure if you’re real of if I’m having..." Tony said, already done with the conversation. 

"I am very real. I’m the realest person you’re ever gonna meet." Fury responded, and Tony rolled his eyes. He had only met this man a couple times, and he still wasn't used to his annoying presence.

"Just my luck. Where’s the staff here?" Tony spat back, showing Fury he wasn't taking this seriously. And by the glare the man sent him, he knew what Tony was doing. 

"That’s not looking so good." Fury said next, moving the cuff of his under armor to see the palladium poisoning moving up his neck. Tony let out a sigh, curious as to how he found out. 

"I’ve been worse." Tony retorted, dread filling his stomach, making him nauseous. 

"We’ve secured the perimeter but I don’t think we should hold it for too much longer." his wife's voice cut in. He looked up at her in surprise, and then he froze. If Fury knew...then so did she. He met her eyes, and there was nothing but professionalism in them. She was pissed. 

"Tasha...how?" Tony asked next, not able to get much more out due to shock. 

"JARVIS told me, when I told him I was worried about you. I was waiting to see how long it would take you to tell me." she spat back, voice was cold and businesslike. 

"I-" Tony started, but her cold glare cut him off. They stared at each other for a few moments before Fury cut in. 

"You’ve been very busy. You made your assistant your CEO, you’re giving away all your stuff. You let your friend fly away with your suit. Now, if I didn’t know better..."

"You don’t know better. I didn’t give it to him. He took it." Tony said, despite knowing the truth. 

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. He took it? You’re Iron Man and he just took it? The little brother walked in there and took your suit?" He asked incredulously, before turning to Natasha, "Is that possible?" he asked her. Natasha sent him a cold look before answering. 

"Well, according to Tony's database security guidelines, there are redundancies to prevent unauthorized usage." Natasha replied, sounding very robotic. He spluttered for a second before she got up and left. 

"What do you want from me?" Tony sighed. Fury let out a startled laugh. 

"What do we want from you? What do you want from us? You have become a problem, a problem I have to deal with. Contrary to your belief, you are not the center of my universe. I have bigger problems than you in the southwest region to deal with. Hit him." Tony barely processing the words before feeling a prick in his neck. 

"Oh, God, are gonna steal my kidney and sell it? Could you please not do anything awful for five seconds? What did she just do to me?" Directing his words at Fury, rather than Natasha, as he slowly felt better as whatever he was injected with ran it's course. 

"What did we just do for you? That’s lithium dioxide. It’s gonna take the edge off. We’re trying to get you back to work." Fury said, getting back to business. 

"Give me a couple of boxes of that. I’ll be right as rain." Tony said, slightly grateful for something to make him feel better. 

"It’s not a cure, it just abates the symptoms." Natasha snapped angrily. Tony looked at her before deciding not to say anything. 

"Doesn’t look like it’s gonna be an easy fix." Fury said, standing up. He motioned for Natasha to lead the way, and she was gone before Tony could say anything to her. 

"Trust me, I know. I’m good at this stuff. I’ve been looking for a suitable replacement for palladium. I’ve tried every combination, every permutation of every known element." He said bitterly, looking out the window to where Natasha was waiting next to a black car. 

"Well, I’m here to tell you, you haven’t tried them all." He said. "Meet me at the mansion." He demanded, before leaving.  
\---  
He let out a sigh, this apology he had planned for Pepper was not going well. He opened his mouth to try again, when the door opened behind him, and he heard that familiar voice yet again. 

"Ms Potts?" his wife was standing in the doorway. Why was she here? For Pepper?

"Hi, come on in." Pepper said kindly, which was new because didn't she hate Natasha, or Natalie.

"Wheels up in 25 minutes." Natasha replied coolly, handing Pepper something to sign. Tony was confused. 

"Thank you." Pepper replied with a smile, and looked up as another person entered the room. 

"Anything else, boss?" Happy's voice called, Tony turned to respond. 

"I’m good, Hap." He said, just as Pepper spoke up too. 

"No, I’ll be just another minute." She responded. So that's how it was going to be?

"I lost both the kids in the divorce." Tony joked, looking at Happy, who shook his head for Tony to stop. He was feeling annoyed so he turned to his wife and started speaking.

"Are you blending in well here, Natalie? Here are Stark Enterprises? Your name is Natalie, isn’t it? I thought you two didn’t get along?" Tony questioned, ignoring the not so subtle glare his wife was sending him.

"No. That’s not so." Pepper responded, and Tony rolled his eyes. Of course she's trying to get in with Pepper. What was she planning?

"It’s just me you don’t care for." he said, feeling a bit hurt when Pepper just shrugged. He was really pushing everyone away wasn't he? I guess it would make it easier for them when he eventually...he shook his head to clear his thoughts as Pepper started speaking again. 

"Actually, while you’re here maybe you and Natalie could discuss the matter of the personal belongings." she said, her voice tight as she left the room with Happy. 

"Absolutely." Natasha said, watching as they both left before turning on Tony. "I’m surprised you can keep your mouth shut." she spat. He shook his head, and pointed at her. 

"Boy, you’re good. You are mind-blowingly duplicitous. How do you do it? You just tear things… You’re a triple impostor. I’ve never seen anything like you. Is there anything real about you? Do you even speak Latin?" He spat out, bringing up her cover, wanting to hurt her like she hurt him. He knew she didn't deserve being called out like that, like he didn't know who she truly was. And by the seething look she threw him she agreed. 

"Can you drive yourself home or should I have you collected?" she asked, venom in her voice, before leaving and slamming the door behind her. 

"You’re good." he mumbled, as he picked up the box of strawberries and headed to the door.  
\---  
"Reboot complete. You got your best friend back." his wife's voice chimed in his ear, and he sighed in relief. 

"Thank you very much, Agent Romanov." he said professionally, still not sure where they stood. 

"Well done on the new chest piece. I am reading significant higher output and your vitals all look promising." she responded, and he could have sworn he heard a bit of relief in her voice. 

"Yes, for the moment, I’m not dying. Thank you." he responded, heading over to where Rhodey was on the ground. He heard a sigh from the comms. 

"So you really were dying? Were you ever going to tell me?" Natasha asked then. He sighed, he didn't really want to get into this now. 

"I was going to tell you." he defended. She scoffed. 

"Then why didn't you tell me?" she responded, coldly. 

"I was going to make an omelet and tell you! But I chickened out. Now I will formally apologize when I'm not fighting off a Hammer-oid attack." he said exasperatedly. He heard her huff. 

"Fine." she said. He rolled his eyes and got Rhodey to wake up. 

Soon after the fight ended he heard all the drones start beeping. 

"All these drones are rigged to blow. We gotta get out of here man." Rhodey said, and Tony took off. 

"Nat?" he called into his comms. 

"I'm fine, but Pepper is still there!" she said, and he flew quickly, just barely grabbing Pepper before the bots exploded around where she was standing.   
\---  
"Well who was watching Peter while you and Rhodey were fighting these people?" Pepper asked, her voice almost a yell, as they walked into the mansion. Tony grimaced. 

"I called a friend." Tony said, staying vague, until he heard sobbing coming from the living room. He spared Pepper a glance as he rushed into the room, seeing an awkward Coulson trying to console his son. 

"Agent Coulson?" he heard Pepper ask, confused, from behind him. But he was too focused on Peter. 

"Hey, Peter. Baby, Daddy's right here. It's okay." Tony consoled, as he picked Peter up and started rocking him as if he was a baby. 

"Uncle Phil said you were fighting robots!" Peter wailed. "I thought you were going to die!" his cries kept getting louder despite how much Tony tried to calm him down. He shot Phil a glare, to which the man just shrugged. 

"I did fight some robots. But I'm not dead. I'm right here, baby. You need to stop crying, you're going to make yourself sick." Tony said, sitting down on the ground with Peter in his arms, continuing the rocking motions. Peter seemed to calm down a bit, and Tony thought it had finally worked, when Peter shot up in his arms. 

"But what about Momma?! Phil said she was there too! Where's Momma? I want Momma!" he shouted, and Tony tried not to be too mad at his son, for pretty much blowing their cover right in front of Pepper. He was only six. He glanced at Pepper who had her brows furrowed. 

"Tony, what is he talking about. Tell me he doesn't think his mother is still..." she trailed off, looking between the two. Tony could barely hear her over Peter's screams. He was getting more and more hysterical by the minute. Tony decided now was as good a time as any for Pepper to find out. He turned to Coulson. 

"Get her here. Now. Please." he said, voice desperate. Phil's eyes widened, before he nodded and rushed out of the room. 

"Tony, what are you talking about?" Pepper asked, but Tony ignored her again. 

"Hey Peter, shhhh. Uncle Phil went to go get Momma, okay? She'll be here any minute. But you need to calm down okay?" he whispered to his son. Peter seemed to understand what he said over his cries, because they calmed down substantially, but there were still tears rolling down his face. He continued rocking them back and forth, until he heard footsteps coming through the entryway. 

"Peter?" he heard his wife call and soon she was rushing toward them. He handed Peter over willingly, but stayed close to his little family. 

"Natalie?" he heard Pepper ask. Natasha heard and snapped her head up to send Tony a look. 

"Sorry. Peter wouldn't calm down unless he saw you." Tony defended, and Natasha nodded, before turning her attention to Peter. 

"Hey, bug. Why don't you take a breath and tell Momma why you're crying?" she said in a soft voice, so unlike the voice she used as Natalie. Peter hiccuped a few times, before answering, Natasha's hands coming up to wipe the tears from his face. 

"Be-because Un-uncle Phil said you and Daddy were fighting robots. A-and Daddy came home, but you didn't. I thought you got hurted." Peter hiccuped. Natasha deflated at his words, and Tony rubbed a hand over her back. 

"It's okay, baby. We're okay. We're here." she whispered pressing a kiss to his forehead. They all sat there in silence, as Natasha rocked their son back and forth. It didn't take long until he fell asleep. He helped Natasha stand, while keeping Peter in her arms. 

"I'll take him to bed. I think you have some explaining to do." Natasha said, nodding towards Pepper. He nodded, pressing a kiss to her forehead, before she gave him a gentle smile and headed upstairs. 

He turned to Pepper, who was sitting on the couch with a shocked look on her face. 

"That was Natalie. From legal." she said, meeting his eyes. He drew in a breath. 

"Kinda, yeah." he responded. 

"And she's Peter's mom?" she asked again, before he could say anything else. 

"Kinda." he said again. This seemed to agitate her, because she stood up and started pacing. 

"You need to do a little better than kind of, Tony." she said, stopping to send him a glare. 

"Okay, let's sit. It's better if we sit." he said, gently grabbing her arm and leading her back to the couch she had just abandoned. 

"So that wasn't Natalie from legal?" she asked, then. He shrugged, and held his hands out for her to give him the floor. 

"It was. But that was just her cover. You remember SHIELD?" he asked, she nodded. "Well she's an agent from SHIELD, a spy. She was undercover at SI to figure out why I signed the company to you." he explained. 

"Okay, but how do you know her, how is she Peter's mom? What about Mary?" Pepper fired questions at him, and he held his hands up again. 

"Mary is still Peter's biological mom. But Natasha is his...step mom I guess you could say. Because she's my...wife." he finished lamely. Pepper shot up. 

"She's your wife?" she asked incredulously. "How?" 

"We met when we were teenagers. She was at one of my parents functions on a mission. We met and kept running into each other. We ended up getting married a little bit after Peter was born." Tony explained. 

"Okay...so this entire time, she was your wife? Undercover as your employee?" Pepper asked, sitting down again.

"Yes." Natasha spoke up, re-entering the room and taking a seat on Tony's other side. Tony reached out and grabbed her hand, craving the comfort. 

"Why didn't you say anything?" Pepper asked, looking away from Natasha to Tony. 

"He didn't tell anyone because I asked him not to. With my job, it makes it dangerous to have any family." Natasha replied coolly, and Tony gave her hand a squeeze. Pepper nodded, before standing up and smoothing out her skirt. 

"Okay. You still have a lot of explaining to do. But I need a break. I'll see you in a couple days, Tony." she said, nodding to the both of them, before leaving. They sat there silently for a few minutes before they slowly turned to each other. 

He stared into his wife's striking green eyes, pressing their foreheads together, gripping both her hands in his. 

"I'm so sorry. For not telling you, that was stupid." he whispered, closing his eyes. He focused on their breaths overlapping between them. 

"I'm sorry for spying on you." Natasha said, causing him to laugh softly. He reopened his eyes and met hers. 

"I promise to never lie to you again, if you promise to never spy on me again?" he said, with a smirk. 

"That sounds like a deal, Mr. Stark." She said, with a smirk of her own. He pulled away, but kept her hand in his. She furrowed her eyebrows, concern evident in her features. 

"Tony?" she asked softly, rubbing her thumb along his knuckles. He looked up at her, tears in his eyes. 

"I thought I was going to die, Tash. I thought I was never going to get to see you guys again. You have to understand-" he trailed off, a lump forming in his throat. Natasha studied him before making a hum of understanding. 

"You were trying to push us away. To make it easier on us when you died." she stated, rather than questioned. He nodded, closing his eyes as the tears fell down his face. 

"I didn't mean any of those things I said to you, I just thought...if you hated me, it wouldn't hurt so much." Tony said, sniffing. Natasha shook her head, and pulled him into a hug, his head tucked under her chin. 

"You were wrong. It would have hurt just the same." she whispered, and Tony let out a choked sob. He felt her press a kiss to his head. 

"It's okay. You're not going to die. Let's go get some sleep." she said, pulling him up and wrapping her arms around his waist, leading him up the stairs. 

"I love you Tasha." he said, as she helped him under the covers. 

"I love you too, Tony." she whispered back, kissing him softly, before turning the light off and settling herself on his chest. 

"I'm so glad you're still alive, любовь." she said, mirroring what she said months previously. He pressed a kiss into her hair. 

"Not as glad as I am. I could never leave you." he responded, feeling her drift off to sleep in his arms. 

IRONMAN and BLACK WIDOW WILL RETURN

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tell me what you think?! And I know Natasha and Peter weren't in it as much as they could be, but Tony was trying to push them away to make it hurt less when he died. So...sorry....
> 
> Leave a comment! Thanks for reading!


	3. Avengers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Sorry this took a bit of time. School's rough. 
> 
> I'm really excited about this chapter, because I love Avengers. I can literally quote half the scenes word for word with how much I've watched it, so I hope I can do it justice. 
> 
> And yeah, like I said in the last chapter, the timeline for these movies are very spotty honestly. I don't want to mess anything up but i don't want to go with release date for the movies cause that's confusing so I've kind of made my own timeline. 
> 
> This takes place about a year after Ironman 2.
> 
> I hope you enjoy!

"You're good on this end. The rest is up to you." Tony said, flying out of the water and heading back to the tower. 

"You disconnected the transmission lines? Are we off the grid?" Natasha asked him, and he could barely make out the sound of Peter's excited ramblings in the background. He pulled up a feed and saw his beautiful wife and son. 

"Stark Tower is about to become a beacon of self-sustaining, clean energy. Are you seriously not going to tell me what mission Coulson sent you on?" Tony asked, she had been on an undercover op when Coulson called her out and sent her somewhere else. She had just gotten back that day, and still wouldn't tell him what it was for. But she had been shaken, so he was concerned.

"Assuming the arc reactor takes over and it actually works?" Natasha shoots back, ignoring his question. He decided to let it go as he flew into view of the tower. 

"I assume. Light her up." a smile stretches across his face as he watches the tower light up, ending with his name. 

"How does it look?" Peter shouts excitedly. 

"Like Christmas, but with more... me." Tony responded, earning a snort from Natasha. 

"Yes, because that's what the world needs more of. Hurry back, it's almost time for Peter to go to bed." Natasha said, and he could see her shoot a stern look at their son, before the comms filled up with mumbled whining. 

"Tasha, you're killing me. Remember? Enjoy the moment." he retorted, touching down on the landing pad, letting the machinery take his suit off for him. 

"Then get in here and I will." Natasha said, causing Peter to add a soft "Ew." 

"Sir, Agent Coulson of SHIELD is on the line." JARVIS' voice speaks up in his ear. He rolls his eyes. 

"I'm not in. I'm actually out." he claims, walking into the penthouse, not caring why Coulson was trying to get in contact with him. 

"Sir, I'm afraid he's insisting." JARVIS replied. Tony let out a sigh. 

"Grow a spine Jarvis. I've got a date." he said, taking out his earpiece and walking up to where his wife was checking the power levels. 

"Levels are holding steady... I think." she responds, turning into him as he places his arm around her shoulder, and presses a kiss to her forehead.

"Of course they are, I was directly involved. Which brings me to my next question: how does it feel to be a genius?" He asks, with a smirk, resting his hands on her hips. She rolls her eyes, and gives him a smirk of her own. 

"Well, ha, I really wouldn't know now, would I?" she responds, pulling away and heading over to the couch where Peter was sitting, doing homework. 

"What do you mean? All this came from you." he said, trying to back track. 

"No. All this came from that." she said, tapping his arc reactor. He follows her lead and settles on the couch next to her. 

"Give yourself some credit, please. Stark Tower is your baby. Give yourself... twelve percent of the credit." Tony said, pulling Peter into his side and ruffling his hair. He hears Natasha scoff beside him. 

"Twelve percent?" she asks incredulously, her perfectly sculptured eyebrow raised. 

"An argument can be made for fifteen." he retorts with a smirk, finding amusement in messing with his wife.

"Twelve percent? Of my baby?" she deadpans then, giving his shoulder a soft slap. 

"Well, I did do all the heavy lifting. Literally, I lifted the heavy things. And I'm sorry, but the security snafu? That was on you." He said, pointing at a problem for Peter to correct on his paper. 

"Oooooh." Natasha said, a soft smile playing on her face, enjoying the moment. 

"My private elevator..." he started, before she interrupted. 

"You mean _our_ elevator?" she asked sweetly, which he chooses to ignore, and keep going. 

"...was teeming with sweaty workmen. I'm going to pay for that comment about percentages in some subtle way later, aren't I?" Tony asks, grimacing. Natasha gives him a smile, one that was too innocent for his liking. 

"Not gonna be that subtle." she replies, before turning to Peter. "Hey, bug. You done?" she asked, looking over their sons shoulder at his completed homework. 

"Yep!" Peter said with a smile, his grin showing the gaps of his missing teeth. 

"Good. Go get ready for bed. Me and Dad will be in there in a minute." she responded, watching her son nod before heading down the hallway. 

"He's getting too big." Tony said, pouting. 

"He's only 7." Natasha replied with a laugh. Tony just pouted some more. 

"Almost 8. That's too big." he said. Natasha opened her mouth to reply before she was interrupted. 

"Sir, the telephone. I'm afraid my protocols are being overwritten." JARVIS says, causing Natasha to look at him with concern. 

"Stark, we need to talk." Coulson's voice comes out of his phone, and Natasha raises her eyebrows at him. He waves her off and picks it up. 

"You have reached the life model decoy of Tony Stark, please leave a message." he says, Natasha shaking her head at him disapprovingly. 

"This is urgent." the agent's voice replied.

"Then leave it urgently." Tony says impatiently, before the elevator opened revealing a very annoyed Coulson.

"Security breach. That's on you." he says, pointing at Natasha as they both stand up to greet the man. 

"Mr. Stark." Coulson starts, walking into the room. 

"Phil?" Natasha asks, concerned. 

"Phil? Uh, his first name is Agent." Tony jokes, trying to lighten the tension. The two of them looked too worried for his liking. 

"We need you to look this over. Soon as possible." Agent says, holding out a folder for him. He holds a hand up and looks at his wife, who has a calculating gaze on her face as she studies Phil. 

"I don't like being handed things." Tony says, defensively. He looks at Natasha again, trying to get a read on her. 

"That's alright,`cause I love to be handed things." Natasha says, narrowing her eyes at Coulson, before grabbing the file and handing it to Tony.

"Official consulting hours are between eight and five every other Thursday." Tony said, confused at why this was so urgent, he was just a consultant after all. He remembers reading the report his wife wrote on him, he had felt hurt at first, but once she explained, he understood. She didn't want him to get pulled into SHIELD and have to run missions. Peter already had one parent like that, he didn't need two. 

"This isn't a consultation." Coulson replied, and he could tell Natasha was furious. 

"Is this about The Avengers?" she asks Coulson, coldly.

"The Avengers Initiative was scrapped, I thought. And I didn't even qualify." Tony cut in, trying to diffuse the situation before it escalated. 

"Exactly. I wrote the report. I should know." Natasha said, crossing her arms. 

"Yeah, apparently I'm volatile, self-obsessed, don't play well with others." Tony replied, still confused as to what was going on, but using his humor to calm himself, and hopefully his wife, down. 

"This isn't about personality profiles anymore." Coulson replied, looking at Natasha apologetically. 

"Whatever. Tash, got a minute?" he says, interrupting Natasha before she could bite Coulson's head off. He walked over to his holo table and brought up the files display. 

"You know, I thought we were having a moment." he joked, hoping it would calm her down. 

"I was having twelve percent of a moment." she bit back. Tony looked at her with concern. 

"This must be serious. You both seem pretty shaken." Tony asks gently, and watches as his wife lets out a sigh. 

"I didn't want you anywhere near this." she said, watching as he opened up all of the files. 

"What is this?" Tony asked, before turning and looking at all of the files. He furrowed his brows in confusion before he heard small footsteps coming down the hall. 

"Uncle Phil? What are you doing here? Does Mom have to go into work?" Peter asked, walking up and giving Phil a hug, which the agent returned stiffly. 

"Yeah, I do Pete." Natasha spoke up, giving him a reassuring smile, before she turned to Tony. 

"Your leaving tonight? Why not tomorrow, like we planned?" Tony asked, voice just as quiet. 

"You have some reading to do. You need to get Peter somewhere safe. Call Pepper or Rhodey, get him out of New York." Natasha whispered, and walked away before he could say anything else. Which really worried him. 

"Okay, Phil let's go. Peter be good, listen to your father okay? Do whatever he tells you to do, no whining." he hears Natasha say, before her and Phil are gone. He whips out his phone and dials Pepper. 

"Tony? Is everything okay?" she asks, right as she picks up. Tony lets out a shaky breath. 

"I need you to take Peter."   
\---  
_You're an idiot, trying to fight Thor like that. -N_

Tony smirked down at his phone, as Coulson led him to the bridge where everyone was waiting. It was fun to jump in on Cap's moment to capture Loki, and he was pretty sure his wife thought it was funny too. But, they decided not to let anyone else know about them, that didn't already know, so he had to prepare to see her and try not to give anything away. 

"Iridium, what did they need the Iridium for?" he hears a voice ask as he walks out into the room, waving a goodbye to Coulson. 

"It's a stabilizing agent. Means the portal won't collapse on itself, like it did at SHIELD." He answers, strutting into the room, turning on his media persona. He risks a short glance at Natasha, who is holding back and eye roll, before he walks up to Thor. 

"No hard feelings, Point Break. You've got a mean swing." he says, patting the God's giant arm. "Also, it means the portal can open as wide, and stay open as long, as Loki wants." he finishes coming to stand at Fury's spot, deciding to have a little fun. 

"Uh, raise the missen-mast, jib the top sails." he says, watching as a dozen agents give him unimpressed looks. "That man is playing Galaga! Thought we wouldn't notice. But we did." Tony says, catching them all off guard and pointing at the agent in question. He felt a little bad exposing him, but it helped his obnoxious image. 

He stood there silently a little longer, covering one eye and looking around all of the monitors. This must be really hard for Fury to see. 

"How does Fury even see these?" he asks, turning to Maria, who is giving him a hard stare. 

"He turns." she says. And Tony looks at the displays once more, already coming up with plans to make Fury a display that would follow his good eye. He shook his head, he needed to focus, make them believe he was who they thought he was, it's the only way to keep Peter safe.   
  
"Sounds exhausting." he retorts, before walking around the display, trying to find the perfect place to plant JARVIS. He keeps talking to distract the two spies in the room. 

"The rest of the raw materials, Agent Barton can get his hands on pretty easily. Only major component he still needs is a power source. A high energy density,something to kick start the cube." he says, successfully planting his bug, clapping his hands together. He slightly regretted bringing up Clint, who he knew Natasha was close to, and was the only person Natasha had told about them other than Fury and Coulson. But he had to pretend he didn't know him.

"When did you become an expert in thermonuclear astrophysics?" Maria asked sarcastically. And he smirked, she really thought he wasn't?

"Last night." he deadpanned. "The packet, Selvig's notes, the Extraction Theory papers. Am I the only one who did the reading?" he asked, sounding a little cocky. He grimaced internally, he really hated acting like a stuck up, know it all. 

"Does Loki need any particular kind of power source?" Captain America cuts in, voice professional. Tony had to physically stop himself from rolling his eyes. He spared another glance to Natasha and saw she was feeling the same way. She kept her eyes focused on whoever was speaking though, so she wasn't looking his way. 

"He's got to heat the cube to a hundred and twenty million Kelvin just to break through the Coulomb barrier." the man he recognized as Bruce Banner spoke up. He nodded appreciatively. 

"Unless, Selvig has figured out how to stabilize the quantum tunneling effect." he responds, heading over to where the scientist was standing. 

"Well, if he could do that he could achieve heavy ion fusion at any reactor on the planet." Bruce responded, and Tony let out a breath of relief. 

"Finally, someone who speaks English." he replied, seeing the corner of Natasha's mouth quirk up slightly at his antics. 

"Is that what just happened?" he heard Steve ask, but ignored it in favor of shaking the doctor's hand. 

"It's good to meet you, Dr. Banner. You're work on anti-electron collisions is unparalleled. And I'm a huge fan of the way you lose control and turn into an enormous green rage monster." he told the man, as he shook his hand. He heard a deep sigh come from his wife, but he saw a glimmer of amusement in the doctor's eyes as he smiled. 

"Thanks." he replied, a small smile on his face. 

"Dr. Banner is only here to track the cube. I was hoping you might join him." he turned, to see Fury walk into the room. He gave the man a playful wave, which the man ignored, but it earned him an odd look from the others. 

"Let's start with that stick of his. It may be magical, but it works an awful lot like a Hydra weapon." Steve spoke up, using a voice that sounded to Tony like the man thought he was in charge. Interesting.

"I don't know about that, but it is powered by the cube. And I'd like to know how Loki used it to turn two of the sharpest men I know into his personal flying monkeys." Fury responded, voice hard. He could see Natasha stiffen a bit at the mention of Clint. He made a mental note to check on her later. 

"Monkeys? I do not understand." Thor spoke up confused, Tony crossed his arms in annoyance. 

I do! I understood that reference." Rogers claimed, a little too excited. Tony didn't stop himself from rolling his eyes that time. 

"Shall we play, doctor?" he asks, turning to Banner. The man nods and starts to lead him out of the room. 

"This way, sir." the man says, and Tony throws a kiss over his shoulder at Fury with a wink before he followed. He could see Fury roll his eye before he disappeared from view.   
\---

They were just in the middle of figuring out how to track the cube when his phone rings. He looks down and sees Natasha's contact. 

"Excuse me a moment." he says to Bruce, and waits for the other man to wave him off, before heading to the far corner of the lab. 

"Hey, where are you?" he asked as he answered, keeping his voice quiet. 

"I'm secure, don't worry. Fury's annoyed at your antics you know?" she responded, and he felt his shoulders loosen with relief at hearing her voice filled with so much love towards him. 

"I had to. His reactions are worth it." he defended, a soft smile stretching his face. 

"Is JARVIS hacking into SHIELD as we speak?" was her next question, causing him to freeze. 

"No?" he replied, weakly. 

"Mmmhmm. You aren't as subtle as you think. Don't worry, no one else knows and I won't say anything." she responds, a fondness in her voice. 

"This is why I love you." he whispers, glancing back to make sure Bruce wasn't hearing anything. 

"I thought so. I love you too. Check on Peter for me. I got to go before someone figures out I left." she responds, but Tony speaks up before she can hang up. 

"Wait, how are you holding up?" he asks, hoping she knows he's referring to Clint. He hears a sigh on the other end. 

"I'll find him." was all she said, before the line went dead. He let out a sigh of his own before glancing at Bruce, who was still focused on the work in front of him. So he dialed Pepper.

"Hey Tony, we just touched down in Malibu." she said, after the first ring. 

"Good. That's good. I can't thank you enough for doing this." he said, gratefully. 

"I know. I don't mind. Are you ever going to tell me what's going on?" she asks, with a huff. 

"I can't yet...just keep your eyes on the news okay? And don't bring Peter back until I tell you." he said, seriously. 

"Okay. I'm assuming you want to talk to him?" she asks then, sounding concerned, but trying to hide it.

"Yes, please." he said, meekly. There was a shuffling on the other line, before a small voice spoke up. 

"Dad?" Tony relaxed at the sound of his son's voice, he was safe. 

"Hey, bug. How's California?" he asked, making his voice sound excited. 

"We just got here, but Pepper said we can go to the beach, so I'm excited. I just wish you and Mom were here." Peter's voice started out happy, but quickly turned morose. 

"I know, bug. I wish we were there too. As soon as me and Mom are done here, maybe we can all take a family vacation. What do you say?" he said, putting some fake enthusiasm in his voice. 

"Okay." Peter replied, still sounding bummed. 

"Okay. Make sure to harass your Uncle Happy for me okay?" he said, hoping this would take the sadness out of his kid's voice. 

"Okay! Love you!" Peter said, sounding slightly happier than before. 

"Love you too, bug. Be good." he said, before hanging up. He took a deep breath before heading back to the table where Bruce was sitting. The other man looked up briefly as he approached before looking back down at his work. 

"Girlfriend?" the man asked, curiously. 

"Something like that." Tony replied, getting back to work.   
\---  
She pressed the button on her wrist, one Tony made for her, that would scramble any video or audio feed while she was in a room. Fury wanted her to interrogate Loki, and she couldn't be too safe when he had control of Clint. Clint who knew about Peter and Tony. She took a deep breath and slipped into her interrogation mindset. 

"Hm. There’s not many people who can sneak up on me." Loki said as she walked in. 

"But you figured I’d come." she replied smoothly. 

"After. After whatever tortures Fury can concoct, you would appear as a friend, as a balm. And I would cooperate." he replied, his voice low. 

"I wanna know what you’ve done to Agent Barton." she asked simply. 

"I’d say I’ve expanded his mind." he said, looking far too pleased with himself. She walked slowly, moving closer to the glass, crossing her arms. 

"And once you’ve won. Once you’re king of the mountain. What happens to his mind?" she said, keeping her voice level. 

"Ooh..Is this love, Agent Romanoff?" he shoots back then, with amusement in his voice. 

"Love is for children. I owe him a debt." she says back, harshly. He raises his eyebrows and smiles slightly. 

"Tell me." he says, nodding his head toward her, backing up. She smirks at bit and lets out a breath. She turns around and sits down, before continuing smoothly. 

"Before I worked for SHIELD, I uh...well, I made a name for myself. I have a very specific skill set. I didn’t care who I used it for, or on. I got on SHIELD’s radar in a bad way. Agent Barton was sent to kill me, he made a different call." she said, regulating how much emotion she put in the sentence and where. 

"And what will you do if I vow to spare him?" he asks then, conversationally. 

"Not let you out." she says back simply with a smirk. He laughs. 

"Ah, no. But I like this. Your world in the balance, and you bargain for one man?" he asked, amused. 

"Regime’s fall everyday. I tend not to weep over that, I’m Russian, or I was." she deadpans.

"And what are you now?" he asks curiously. She stands up. 

"It’s really not that complicated. I got red in my ledger. I’d like to wipe it out." she says, crossing her arms again, and coming to stand in front of the glass. 

"Can you? Can you wipe out that much red? Drakov’s daughter? Sao Paulo? The hospital fire? What about your husband and son, the danger you put them in day in and day out? Barton told me everything. Your ledger is dripping, it’s gushing red, and you think saving a man no more virtuous than yourself will change anything? This is the basest sentimentality. This is a child, a prayer. Pathetic. You lie and kill in the service of liars and killers. You pretend to be separate, to have your own code something that makes up for the horrors. But they are a part of you, and they will never go away." he monologues, catching her off guard at the mention of Tony and Peter. 

The reaction she has to him mentioning them was real, so she doesn't shove it down, and chooses to play on that. Make him think he's succeeding. He continues speaking, and slams his hand on the glass, she lets herself flinch. 

"I won’t touch Barton! Not until I make him kill you. Slowly, intimately, in every way he knows you fear. And then he’ll wake just long enough to see his good work," she turns away, pretending to be horrified,"and when he screams I’ll split his skull! This is my bargain, you mewling quim!" he finishes shouting.

She sniffs a few times, keeping her head hung low, making sure to play it up. This man was insane. 

"You’re a monster." she whispers, and he chuckles. 

"Oh, no. You brought the monster." he replies, and she's got it. She drops her act and turns toward him. 

"So, Banner? That’s your play." she says simply, watching as his face twists in confusion at her lack of emotion. 

"What?" he asks, and she turns to walk towards the door. She presses on her earpiece, to allow it to work past the scramblers. 

"Loki means to unleash the Hulk. Keep Banner in the lab, I’m on my way. Send Thor as well." she says to Fury. Then she turns, a smirk on her face. 

"Thank you, for your cooperation." she says sweetly, and sweeps out of the room.   
\---  
"What are you doing, Mr. Stark?" he rolled his eyes at Bruce as he turned to meet Fury's gaze as the man stalked in. 

"Uh...kind of been wondering the same thing about you." Tony shot back, raising his eyebrows. 

"You're supposed to be locating the Tesseract." Fury reprimanded. 

"We are. The model's locked and we're sweeping for the signature now. When we get a hit, we'll have the location within half a mile." Bruce spoke up for him. 

"And you'll get your cube back, no muss, no fuss...What is PHASE 2?" Tony asked as his computer beeped as the files started filling his screen. 

"PHASE 2 is SHIELD uses the cube to make weapons." Steve interrupted, storming in with an angry look on his face, dropping a gun on the lab table. "Sorry, the computer was moving a little slow." he spat, directing it at Tony, who just shook his head. 

"Rogers, we gathered everything related to the Tesseract. This does not mean that we're..." Fury tried to defend, but Tony pulled up the weapon schematics and turned the screen. 

"I'm sorry, Nick. What were you lying?" he asked, with a smirk.

"I was wrong, director. The world hasn't changed a bit." Steve said, sounding very altruistic. Tony rolled his eyes, but directed his attention to the door as his wife and Thor walked into the room. Natasha had her gaze on Bruce, which didn't seem the please the doctor at all. Tony furrowed his brows and looked between the two. 

"Did you know about this?" Bruce accused his wife. Natasha didn't even blink, which made Tony think that she did. He stayed silent, curious on how she was going to talk her way out of this one. 

"You wanna think about removing yourself from this environment, doctor?" she asked instead, using what Tony liked to call her spy voice. It made her targets trust her. He didn't know what to think about the fact she was using it on Bruce. He jumped down from the table and crossed his arms, watching the exchange. 

"I was in Calcutta, I was pretty well removed." Bruce laughed, bitterly. And it occurred to him that the mission Natasha was sent on was to recruit Bruce. 

"Loki's manipulating you." she said, keeping her voice calm. Tony narrowed his eyes at her, trying to figure out what exactly was going on.

"And you've been doing what exactly?" Bruce shot back, causing Tony to raise his eyebrows at Natasha. 

"You didn't come here because I bat my eyelashes at you." she replied coolly, glancing his way quickly. Interesting.

"Yes, and I'm not leaving because suddenly you get a little twitchy. I'd like to know why SHIELD is using the Tesseract to build weapons of mass destruction." Bruce said, pointing at the screen. Tony turned away from Natasha and put his focus on Fury. 

"Because of him." Fury sighed, pointing at Thor, who looked offended.   
  
"Me?" he asked incredulously. Tony felt the corners of his lips turn up at that. 

"Last year earth had a visitor from another planet who had a grudge match that leveled a small town. We learned that not only are we not alone, but we are hopelessly, hilariously, outgunned." Fury said, not really helping his case, by the looks on everyone's face. 

"My people want nothing but peace with your planet." Thor defended in his booming voice. 

"But you're not the only people out there, are you? And, you're not the only threat. The world's filling up with people who can't be matched, they can't be controlled." Fury said.

"Like you controlled the cube?" Steve asked, crossing his arms with a look of disappointment. 

"You're work with the Tesseract is what drew Loki to it, and his allies. It is the signal to all the realms that the earth is ready for a higher form of war." Thor said, voice getting even louder than Tony thought possible. 

"A higher form?" Steve questioned, looking concerned. 

"You forced our hand. We had to come up with something." Fury defended. Tony sighed. 

"Nuclear deterrent. `Cause that always calms everything right down." Tony said, tiredly. 

"Remind me again how you made your fortune, Stark?" Fury turned on him, and Tony flinched. Low blow. He could sense Natasha's presence shift slightly in his direction like she wanted to comfort him. 

"I'm sure if he still made weapons, Stark would be neck deep-"

"Wait, wait. Hold on. How is this now about me?" Tony interrupted, a tight feeling in his stomach. This was bringing up flashbacks from his childhood, listening to his dad tell him Captain America would be disappointed in him. 

"I'm sorry, isn't everything?" Steve shot back, and Tony glared at him.  
  
"I thought humans were more evolved than this." he distantly heard Thor joke, angering Fury. 

"Excuse me, do _we_ come to _your_ planet and blow stuff up?" he heard Fury yell. And the next thing he knew everybody blew up and started arguing, him having to listen to Captain freaking America tell him what a terrible person he was.

"You speak of control, yet you court chaos." Thor bellowed next, getting everyone's attention. 

"It's his M.O., isn't it? I mean, what are we, a team? No, no, no. We're a chemical mixture that makes chaos. We're... we're a time-bomb." Bruce said, his tone steely and harsh. Tony turned to look at him in concern, knowing what these people would do if they thought he would hulk out. 

"You need to step away." Fury demanded, looking to Bruce. Tony looked between everyone and decided he needed to try and diffuse the situation. He threw his arm around Steve. 

"Why shouldn't the guy let off a little steam?" he asked. Steve let out a groan beside him, as he pushed Tony's arm away. 

"You know damn well why! Back off!" Steve yelled, his attention now on Tony. Which is exactly what he wanted. He stood more in front of Steve. 

"Oh, I'm starting to want you to make me." Tony teased, seeing the anger fill Steve's face. 

"Big man in a suit of armor. Take that off, what are you?" Steve questioned. Tony narrowed his eyes, wanting more than anything for Natasha to be able to come hold his hands, which he knew were probably shaking. Having a secret wife sucked. 

"Genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist." Tony shot back, feeling bad he had to add the playboy part with his wife in the room. 

"I know guys with none of that worth ten of you." the righteous Captain shot back, and he could sense Natasha's presence shift again but she still didn't actually move. This was the only time he wished she would break cover. 

"I've seen the footage. The only thing you really fight for is yourself. You're not the guy to make the sacrifice play, to lay down on a wire and let the other guy crawl over you." Steve accused, getting too close for Tony's comfort, but he couldn't back down and seem weak. 

"I think I would just cut the wire." he said lamely, not really sure what the point of this conversation was anymore, he just wanted to get out of here. He wanted his wife, he wanted to talk to his son. He was tired. 

"Always a way out... You know, you may not be a threat, but you better stop pretending to be a hero." Steve spat at him, his disgust evident in his voice. That made Tony snap, he suddenly felt himself taking a step closer to the taller man. 

"A hero? Like you? You're a lab rat, Rogers. Everything special about you came out of a bottle!" Tony spat, jaw set, voice tight. 

"Put on the suit, let's go a few rounds." Steve said, the confidence in his voice making Tony snarl. He heard a booming laugh coming from behind him. 

"You people are so petty... and tiny." Thor jokes. This breaks Tony out of his angered reverie, he took a stumbling step back rubbing his head. He didn't know how much more of this he could handle, without completely losing his shit. He glanced at Natasha who had a tight look on her face, but she was avoiding his gaze. He let out a sigh. 

"Yeah, this is a team." Bruce laughed, sarcastically. Tony turned his attention to his new friend, hoping he wouldn't bring the attention back on himself. 

"Agent Romanoff, would you escort Dr.Banner back to his..." Fury started, before Bruce cut him off angrily. 

"Where? You rented my room." He said harshly. Tony sighed, of course he figured out Loki's cage originally had a different purpose. They weren't very subtle. 

"The cell was just in case..." Fury tried to defend. 

"In case you needed to kill me, but you can't! I know! I tried!" Bruce all but shouted. Tony felt his heart clench in his chest. He had guessed that Bruce had had a dark past from what he had read and heard about him. But he had grown fond of the man already, and it killed him to know he had ever felt that way. He felt a sad smile grace his face as he waited to see what would happen next. 

"I got low. I didn't see an end, so I put a bullet in my mouth and the other guy spit it out! So I moved on. I focused on helping other people. I was good, until you dragged me back into this freak show and put everyone here at risk!" Bruce says, clearly upset, sending a glare at his wife. Tony glanced at her and on the surface she looked unbothered, but he could see the panic in her eyes. He shifted a bit, having to stop himself from going over to her. 

You wanna know my secret, Agent Romanoff? You wanna know how I stay calm?" he sneers next, and Tony and watches as Nat and Fury both slowly reach for their guns. He shifts uncomfortably, trying to shoot a look to Bruce to calm down, but sees him grab the scepter. _Come on, Bruce, don't prove them right. _  
  
"Doctor Banner... put down the scepter." Steve said calmly. That breaks Banner's concentration and he looks down at his hand, then the tracker beeps. Tony looks over, knowing that means they located the cube. 

"Got it." he says, watching as Bruce puts down the scepter. 

"Sorry, kids. You don't get to see my little party trick after all." Bruce spits, before following Tony to the computer. 

"Located the Tesseract?" Thor asked. 

"I can get there faster." Tony said, reaching toward his watch to call his suit, before Steve interrupted. 

"Look, all of us..." he started, before he was then interrupted by Thor. 

"The Tesseract belongs on Asgard, no human is a match for it." Thor said, which sounded pretty reasonable to Tony, but he couldn't say that to Steve. Plus, he needed to get out of here. 

"You're not going alone." Steve said, stopping him by grabbing his arm. Tony was definitely losing his patience. 

"You gonna stop me?" Tony challenged, ignoring the look Natasha was sending to him, of course she finally chose to look at him now. 

"Put on the suit, let's find out." Steve challenged back, and Tony let out a sigh. 

"I'm not afraid to hit an old man." he said back. 

"Put on the suit." Steve repeated and Tony was seconds away from calling it, when he heard Bruce say something behind him. The next thing he knew they were being launched across the room from an explosion. 

"Put on the suit!" Steve said, when they got their bearings, but this was a serious demand. 

"Yep!" Tony grunted, accepting the hand that was being held out to him, hoping Natasha was okay.   
\---

Tony rushed to where Fury told him Natasha was with Clint. He was supposed to be back in the conference room in five minutes, apparently Fury wanted to give them a stupid speech. But he insisted he check on his wife first. 

"Tash?" he called as he opened the door. He saw her sitting quietly next to Clint, as he worked his wrists into his restraints. She looked over alarmed, but stood up to greet him. He rushed over and pulled her into his arms, pressing a kiss to her lips quickly, before pulling away and skimming his eyes over her for injuries.

"Are you okay? Fury wouldn't tell me much but he said something about the Hulk then Barton..." Tony rambled, panic building in his chest. He stopped talking when her hands came up to cup his cheeks. 

"Hey, I'm okay." she whispered, stroking his cheeks gently. He nodded, letting out a sigh of relief. 

"Okay, okay. I gotta go listen to Fury try and fail to give us a pep talk. You good here?" he asked, glancing over at Clint warily, who still seemed a thousand miles away. Natasha pressed a kiss to his cheek before nodding, a reassuring smile on her face. 

"We're good. Go. And make sure to fill me in on Fury's pep talk later." She said, and he nodded, giving her one last kiss before he left.   
\---

"Clint, you’re gonna be alright." she said as soon as Tony closed the door after him, sitting down next to her best friend. He scoffed and worked his wrists harder into his restraints. She really didn't like seeing him like this. 

"You know that? Is that what you know? I gotta go in though. I have to flush him out." he mumbled, and Natasha set a cup of water down next to him. 

"You gotta level out, it’s gonna take time." she encouraged. 

"You don’t understand. Have you ever had someone take your brain and play? Pull you out and stuff something else in? You know what it’s like to be unmade?" he asked then, looking up at her. She pursed her lips and looked down at him. 

"You know that I do." she said quietly, and that seemed to calm him down, and he went slack against the restraints. She took that as a cue to undo them, and set to doing that. 

"Why am I back? How did you get him out?" he asked then, watching her carefully. 

"Cognitive re-calibration. I hit you really hard in the head." she said with a small smirk. 

"Thanks. Did I hear Tony in here earlier?" he asked then, rubbing his wrists gently as she finished undoing them. She nodded. 

"He wanted to make sure I was okay." she replied softly, with a smile. Clint nodded. 

"Good man." he said, and they fell into a comfortable silence for a few moments, before Clint spoke up again.

"Natasha, how many agents?" he whispered, and she shook her head.

"Don’t. Don’t do that to yourself, Clint. This is Loki. This is monsters and magic and nothing we were ever trained for." she said sharply, squeezing his hand in comfort. Clint just nodded, and she knew he didn't take her words to heart. 

"Loki. He get away?" he asked instead. Natasha sighed, and sent him a sideways look. 

"Yeah. I don’t suppose you know where?" she asked, knowing it was a long shot. 

"Didn’t need to know. Didn’t ask. He’s gonna make his play soon though. Today." He said though, standing up. She stood up as well and headed towards the door. 

"We gotta stop him." she said, determined. She thought back to her interrogation with the man, and how he somehow knew about Tony and Peter. 

"Yeah? Who’s we?" he asked then, raising an eyebrow at her. 

"I don’t know. Whoever is left." she snapped, causing him to let out a sigh. 

"Well, if I put an arrow through Loki’s eye socket I’d sleep better I suppose." Clint said back, with a smirk. 

"Now you sound like you." she said with a relieved smile. But he just narrowed his eyes at her. 

"But you don’t. You’re a spy, not a soldier. Now you want to wade into a war. Why? What did Loki do to you?" he asked, grabbing her arm and sitting her back down on the bed. She sighed, and focused her gaze on the floor. 

"He didn’t, I just-" she started, trying to think of something to say, but he interrupted her.

"Natasha." he said softly, and she let out a breath. 

"I’ve been compromised. I got red in my ledger. I’d like to wipe it out." she said simply, and from the look in his eyes, he understood. 

\---  
"I can close it. Can anybody copy? I can shut the portal down!" she shouts, hovering the scepter over the crown of the machine. 

"Do it!" Cap's voice speaks in her ear, and she moves the scepter slightly closer before her husband's voice stops her.

"No, wait." she pauses.

"Stark, these things are still coming!" Steve argues. 

"I got a nuke coming in, it’s gonna blow in less than a minute." he responds, and that's when she looks up and sees her husband with a nuke on his back, flying straight for the portal. "And I know just where to put it." he finishes. And Natasha feels the breath in her throat catch, and she's unable to say anything. 

"Stark, you know that’s a one way trip." she hears Steve say, and she blanches. 

"Save the rest for the turn J." is all she hears her husband say, which means he knows that, and yet he's doing it anyway. 

"Tony, I swear to God, don't you dare." she says, before watching him disappear into the portal, tears running down her face. She holds her breath, watching the portal, waiting for him to make a dramatic reappearance. But he doesn't, and she can see the explosion getting closer to the portal. She lets out a choked sob, how was she going to tell Peter. How was she going to raise him alone? How-

"Close it." Steve's voice breaks her out of her thoughts, and she pushes her emotions to the side, and presses the scepter to the machine and watches as the portal closes with her husband still inside. 

She drops the scepter and looks down at the ground, trying to stop the tears. 

"Son of a gun." she hears Steve say then, and she looks back up and sees Tony falling from the sky. She worries for a second when he doesn't slow down, until the Hulk jumps into the air and grabs him. 

She waits with baited breath, her hand glued to the com in her ear, to hear that he's okay. She lets out a shaky breath of relief when she hears his voice crack a joke moments later. 

\---  
He looks over and sees Clint supporting Natasha as they all head back to the tower after eating food. He just wanted to hold her. She had walked up to him when they gathered at the swarma place and slapped him on the arm, before going back to pretending they were just coworkers. The others had gave them odd looks, but Clint had saved them by explaining that Natasha and him had known each other before this. 

But now they were headed back to the tower, where he had offered everyone a place to stay, and he was starting to really feel his injuries. He walked over to where Clint and Natasha were standing and nodded in her direction. 

"Here let me help her." Tony said, voice casual, but his eyes pleading. Clint nodded knowingly, and helped him wrap his arms around her. He let out a sigh of relief, and could tell she felt better with him there too. He gave her hip a squeeze, and she rested her head on his shoulder in response. He let a small smile grace his face. 

Once they were in the elevator, heading up to the guest floors, his phone rang, breaking the tired silence. He handed Natasha back to Clint and reached into his pocket, seeing Pepper's contact. He made brief eye contact with Natasha as the doors opened, before he stepped out and answered the phone. 

"Pep?" he asked, but the broken sobs on the other end told him it wasn't her. 

"Dad?" Peter's sobs caused Tony's heart to clench. He glanced warily around for a second, before deciding he didn't care. 

"Hey baby, what's wrong?" he asked softly, feeling the odd looks he was getting behind him. 

"Pepper had the news on, and-and you flew u-up into th-that hole! But you did-didn't come back out!" Peter sobbed, and Tony frowned, looking at Natasha briefly. 

"It's okay bug, I'm just fine. The Hulk caught me, isn't that cool?" Peter's sobs died down a bit after that, until all that's left were soft hiccups. 

"Yeah, I guess that's pretty cool. Is Mom there?" he asked then, and Tony grimaced. 

"Nah bud, she's not with me at the moment, but as soon as she is I'll have her call you." Tony said, but that seemed to be the wrong thing to say because Peter's breathing picked up on the other line again. 

"Wait, she's not with you? Then how do you know she's okay? Where is she? She was all over the TV too!" Peter demanded, sounding on the verge of tears again. Tony let out a sigh and started pacing, glancing at Natasha, who had a pained look on her face. The others just looked confused, except for Clint who was glancing worriedly at Natasha.

"She's okay, Peter. I promise. She's just busy right now." he defended weakly, not even believing his own words. He hated lying to his kid. 

"You're lying. Where is she? She's not...she's not dead right?" Peter asked then, too smart for his own good, his voice cracking at the end. Tony sighed, and slumped down onto the couch where the others were sat, putting his head in his hand. 

"No, Pete. Mom's not dead." and with those words, he heard Natasha curse softly in Russian, before she stood up. She marched over to him and grabbed the phone out of his hand, before directing her words into it. 

"Peter." she said, and he could vaguely hear the relief on the other line, as his son fired questions at her. 

"Yes, I'm fine. Your dad wasn't lying, I promise." she responded, her voice soft. Tony took that time to glance around at the group. Steve and Bruce were looking in between the two of them, confusion written all over their face. Thor looked content surprisingly, and Clint was watching the others with a smirk on his face. Tony turned his attention back to his wife. 

"I promise. We will see you as soon as you get here tomorrow. Be good for Pepper....I love you too, bug. Here's your dad." she finished the call and handed the phone back to Tony, before reclaiming her seat by Clint, her face blank. Tony laughed a bit, before turning his attention back to his son. 

"Pepper says we are getting on a plane as soon as possible. You'll still be there when we get there right?" his son was asking. Tony sighed, he could sense the nightmares his son would have for weeks, already. 

"I'll be right here, waiting for you. Now I gotta go, I think we broke some superheros. Listen to Pepper, and bother Happy got it?" he asked, smirking over at the others on the couch. 

"Got it. Bye Dad, I love you!" Peter sang on the other end, already sounding happier, knowing both his parents were okay. 

"Love you too, Pete." he said, before hanging up. As soon as he hung up, Steve spoke up.

"You're a dad...and she's a...and you two are?" he stumbled, not seeming to know which question to ask first. 

"Yes. Tony is a dad. I am a mom. And we are married." Natasha said in a flat voice, with a slight smirk on her face. Steve spluttered, and Bruce just looked inquisitive. Thor let out a loud laugh. And soon, they were all laughing. 

And Tony was extremely glad the secret was out, when Natasha scooted closer to him and laid her head on his chest as he wrapped and arm around her waist, telling the story of how they met.

  
THE AVENGERS WILL RETURN

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did y'all think? Did you like it??
> 
> Leave a comment! Also if you have any ideas or requests for certain movies coming up, do let me know!


	4. Post-credit scene

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! I thought this would be a funny thing to add every now and then. They aren't going to be actual post-credit scenes since like, obviously we all know what is going to happen next in a basic way. But I'm thinking these are going to be more slices of life between the movies. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy! 
> 
> I'm working on the next chapter I promise, so hopefully it won't take that long before I post it!

"Wait you've been married with a kid this entire time?" Steve's voice broke the silence at the table. It was the day after the big attack, and all the Avengers had gathered in the kitchen for breakfast, made by the resident super soldier. 

Tony looked up blearily over his coffee mug. He blinked once before making eye contact with Natasha, who was sat across from him nursing her own cup of coffee. She raised her eyebrows at him, her way of telling him he was on his own for this one. He let out a sigh. 

"Yes." he said simply, glancing at Steve, who was looking down at his eggs with a strange look of his face. He looked up at the sound of the elevator, before Cap could say anything else. He heard the telltale clicking of heels, followed by fast small footsteps. He let a smile stretch across his face as he stood up, Natasha mirroring his movements. 

"Dad!" came a shout from the hallway, and soon a small body was launching towards him. He caught Peter with practiced ease, and spun him around. 

"Hey bud!" Tony said, setting him down. Peter gave him a blinding smile, before he caught sight of Natasha behind him. 

"Mom!" the small boy shouted again, wrapping her legs in a hug. She smiled down at him before pressing a kiss to his curls. When Peter let go, she knelt down in front of him. 

"I missed you, bug. Were you good for Pepper and Happy?" Natasha asked quietly. He watched as Peter started telling his mom a story and he turned to Pepper. 

"Was he good?" he asked, before Pepper sent a glare.

"What were you thinking?" she asked quietly, but he could hear the anger in her voice. Tony blinked in surprise. 

"I'm thinking you're mad about something?" he said back, watching as her glare deepened. 

"You flew a nuke into a wormhole?" Pepper reminded him, her arms crossed, her voice still quiet. Tony glanced towards Peter, making sure he couldn't hear, while swallowing down an uncomfortable feeling in his stomach. 

"Yeah can you yell at me later?" Tony asked, quietly, motioning to the kitchen full of Avengers. He watched as Pepper's eyes widened slightly, before she nodded. 

"Fine, but you will be hearing about it later. I've got to run, are you good?" she asked then, voice now suddenly gentle. Tony nodded. She gave him a small smile, pressing a kiss to his cheek, before disappearing. Tony turned back to listen to what Peter was telling his mom, ignoring the audience they had for a minute. 

"-and then I put salt in his coffee. His face got really red!" Peter said, and he could tell Natasha was fighting to keep the smile off her face. 

"Your dad is a terrible influence on you, and you need to leave Happy alone." Natasha said, in a pointed voice he knew was directed at him. Peter knew it too because he let out a giggle and turned to look at Tony. 

"Happy loves it." Tony said flippantly, winking at Peter, who giggled again. Natasha rolled her eyes and stood back up. 

"I'm going to go help Peter unpack, I'll be back." Natasha said, walking over to him and giving him a kiss on the cheek, before nodding meaningful in the Avengers direction. Tony rolled his eyes again, then nodded. Natasha then gave him a smirk before taking Peter's hand and leading him out of the room. 

Tony let out a breath, and walked back to the table, grabbing his now cold coffee and replacing it. He risked a look at the table, and everyone was smiling at him, except for Steve who was staring at him with a hard look on his face. 

"You good there Capsicle?" Tony asked, raising his eyebrows. Steve took a moment to realize who he was talking to. He shook his head a bit before speaking. 

"Why did you take all of those things I said to you on the helicarrier, if you knew they weren't true? I mean, I said some pretty awful things." Steve said, guilt crossing his face. The other Avengers looked curiously at Tony to see how he would react, except Clint, who was still stuffing his face with breakfast. Tony squinted a bit, and realized it was probably because the archer didn't have his hearing aids in. Tony rolled his eyes in amusement, but he could still feel Steve's eyes on him. 

Tony took a sip of his coffee, his gaze fixed on Clint's plate. He worked his jaw for a moment, before looking back at Steve, who was looking at him with an expression that was a mix of guilt and curiosity. 

"Tony?" he prompted, voice quiet. Tony let out a sigh, as he saw Natasha and Peter reenter the room quietly. She nodded at him encouragingly, and he nodded. 

"I had to." Tony said simply with a shrug. Steve furrowed his brows in confusion and was about to respond, when Tony interrupted him again. 

"The fact that you saw me as that type of person, is exactly what I was going for. It's the only way to keep people from finding out. We're good Cap, as long as you keep my family a secret, I won't hold any of your words against you." Tony said, feeling slightly uncomfortable telling these people his greatest secret. But Natasha seemed to trust them, so he hoped it would be okay. 

"We wouldn't ever think to do anything but keep it a secret, Tony. That I can promise." Steve said, and Tony nodded. 

"Good talk. Now I'm going to go spend time with my kid, and my wife. You guys are welcome to stay as long as you want, just don't eat all the good cereal." Tony said, walking over to his family and walking out of the room. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did you think? Did you like the little slice of life? Do you want me to keep doing these?
> 
> Also did anyone notice I introduced Deaf Clint? I hope you guys like that, cause I do. 
> 
> Leave a comment and let me know what you think, or what you want to see next in the coming movies!


	5. Ironman 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all the positive feedback on the last few chapters! I didn't think many people would read this, let alone love it so much! 
> 
> Here is the next installment, Ironman 3. And just a note, I am not good at action scenes and I'm not going to pretend I am, so this one is more of the in between action scenes...and I hope that's okay!
> 
> I hope you guys like it! Let me know what you think in the comments. 
> 
> TW: panic attacks, and mentions of PTSD

"Sir, I believe young Peter is in distress." a voice pulled him out of his own panicked state. He had just woke up from a nightmare of his own, trying to get his breathing under control. 

"Got it, J." he choked out, taking a deep breath, putting on a brave face and heading to his son's room. He paused outside the door really wishing that Natasha was home, before he walked in. His heart sped up even faster at the sight on his son crying in the fetal position. He walked over quietly and sat down next to the small boy. 

"Petey, wake up bud." he said softly, barely keeping his voice from breaking. He set his hand gently on his son's shoulder and watched as his eyes blinked open slowly. 

"Dad!" his son gasped, sitting up, launching into Tony's arms. Something in him calmed at the feeling of his son safe in his arms. 

"Bad dream, bug?" Tony asked quietly, running his hands through Peter's hair. He felt his son nod his head in between sniffles. 

"Wanna talk about it?" he asked again, pulling Peter away so he could wipe the tears from his cheeks. Peter shrugged. 

"Just the aliens again. Where's Mama?" Peter asked then, hiccuping. Tony let out a sigh. 

"She's at work, remember? But she's okay, I promise. No aliens." Tony said, pulling the boy onto his lap, and pressing a kiss to his head. Peter sniffed some more, a few tears leaking out of his eyes. Tony felt his heart break a little bit, which lead him to his next decision. 

"Why don't we call Mom, huh?" Tony asked, and Peter brightened excitedly. 

"Can we?" Peter asked hopefully, and Tony nodded. He usually never called Natasha on her missions, but he was feeling selfish and wanted to hear her voice too. 

"You heard him J, try and get a hold of Tasha." Tony said, helping Peter get settled back under the covers. 

"Tony? Is everything okay?" Natasha's voice filled the room. Her voice was normal as though she was asking about the weather, but Tony could hear the undercurrent of worry in her voice. 

"Everything is good. You secure? We've got a kid who had a bad dream here." Tony said, hoping she could talk. He heard some shuffling on the other line, before she spoke again, this time quieter. 

"I'm secure, but Clint can only cover for me for a few minutes. Pete?" she said, her voice growing softer.

"Hey Mama." Peter said, with a hiccup. 

"I heard you had a bad dream? Aliens again?" she asked, voice filled with worry. Tony could feel his insides uncoil as he listened to her voice, his heart finally calming down after his own nightmare. 

"Yeah. Are you okay Mama?" Peter said, his voice quiet with his childlike worry. He heard a little puff of air from Natasha, before she replied. 

"All good bug. Uncle Clint's taking good care of me I promise. Now why don't you get back to sleep, and let me talk to Dad on his phone for a minute okay?" she asked, and he could hear something in her tone he couldn't quite pinpoint. He pulled his phone out of his pocket, ready to switch the call over when Peter was finished. 

"Okay, Mama. Love you." Peter said, sleep already winning over his body. He curled up under his blankets, as Natasha replied. 

"Love you too, baby. Tony?" she said, and Tony switched the call over. He pressed a quick kiss to his already sleeping son's head, and headed to his room. 

"Hey Tash." He said when he had closed the door. 

"How bad are they?" she asked, her voice all business. He furrowed his eyebrows a bit in confusion. 

"How bad are what?" he asked. 

"The nightmares you're having." she replied simply, and Tony felt his jaw drop. 

"I don't have any idea what you are talking about." he tried, and he could almost hear her eye roll on the other end. 

"Don't lie to me. You never call me on missions, even for Peter. And I could hear the strain in your voice." she deadpanned. Tony sighed. 

"It's not that big of a deal Tash. I'm fine." he said, trying hard to believe his own words. Natasha sighed in response. 

"Well look, love, I have to get back. But please take care of yourself. I'll be home in a couple days. And Clint says he wants to take Peter for a few days, so we can talk about it then, okay?" Natasha said, her voice soft and comforting. Tony closed his eyes and let it calm his frayed nerves. He let out a sigh. 

"Okay. Be safe, Tasha." he said, his voice pleading. 

"I always am, love. Take care of yourself." she said, and the line clicked off. Tony let out a sigh, and headed to the workshop. If he couldn't sleep, he could at least make sure he was prepared to keep his family safe. 

\---

"Come on Pete! We are going to be late meeting Rhodey." Tony called for what felt like the hundredth time that morning. They were supposed to be meeting Rhodey for lunch, and they were running late. Neither of them had slept well the night before, which probably explained the sluggish morning. 

"I'm coming!" Peter called, rushing in with his backpack tangled on one arm. Tony helped him fix it before lifting him into the car and hurrying out of the driveway. 

At the restaurant, he watched Peter color as the news reports on Rhodey's new suit played in the background. He raised his eyebrows at his friend when they mentioned his new name. 

"It tested well with focus groups, alright?" the man defended and Tony smirked, glancing down to make sure Peter was still occupied. 

"I am Iron Patriot..." he mocked in a deep voice. Rhodey rolled his eyes. 

"Listen, War Machine was a little too aggressive, alright? This sends a better message." he defended, and Tony let out a sigh. He could be right about that, but he wasn't about to admit it to his friend. He might be a little biased, but War Machine sounded better. 

"So what's really goin' on? With the Mandarin. Seriously, can we talk about this guy?" he asked quietly, knowing Peter was too busy coloring across the table to hear him. 

"It's classified information, Tony." he raised his eyebrows at his friend again, before Rhodey sighed. "Okay, there have been nine bombings." Tony felt a small panic rise in his chest, he eyed Peter again, who still seemed oblivious. 

"Nine." he muttered in disbelief. 

"The public only knows about three. Here's the thing, nobody can ID a device. There's no bomb casings." Rhodey said, and he could hear the exhaustion in his friend's voice. He sat up a bit straighter. 

"You know I can help, just ask. I got a ton of new tech, I got a prehensile, I got a...I got a new bomb disposal. Catches explosions mid-air." he said, desperate to do something. Rhodey narrowed his eyes at him, before he too glanced at the still distracted Peter. 

"When's the last time you got a good night's sleep?" his friend asked then, concerned. Tony bristled, not wanting to answer that question.

"Einstein slept three hours a year. Look what he did?" he decided to say back, and Rhodey wasn't amused. 

"People are concerned about you, Tony. I'm concerned about you." he said, and Tony knew Natasha and him must have been discussing him behind his back. Either that or he had been talking to Pepper. 

"You're gonna come at me like that?" he said, voice slightly harsh. 

"No. No, look, I'm not trying to be a dic..." he trailed off, as he noticed Peter looking between them curiously. "...tator." his friend finished lamely. Tony snorted. 

"What's up, bug?" he asked, turning to Peter instead. Peter slid his paper over to Tony. 

"Can you fix my drawing of your suit. I can't get it right." his son said, pointing at what Tony thought was a pretty good rendition of his suit. 

"Sure thing, Pete." he said, picking up a crayon, and noticing as Rhodey leaned in closer and started whispering. He smiled at Peter so he wouldn't think anything was wrong. 

"Listen, the Pentagon is scared. After what happened in New York... aliens, come on. They need to look strong. Stopping the Mandarin is priority, but it's not..." Tony felt his heart quicken at the mention of New York, but he kept his focus on the drawing. 

"It's not superhero business, I get it." he choked out, it was getting harder to breathe suddenly. 

"No, it's not, quite frankly. It's American business." Rhodey said a bit harshly, as if he was impatient with Tony. But Tony didn't think too much about it, because he was starting to feel lightheaded. 

"That's why I said I...got it." he said, gasping a bit. He gave Peter another shaky smile, but he was getting worried with how hard he was breathing. He covered his eyes for a moment with his hand, hoping it would help, but to no avail. 

"Are you okay?" Rhodey asked then, startling Tony, causing him to break his son's crayon. 

"I broke the crayon." Tony said dumbly, the lightheaded feeling hitting him full force. 

"Are you okay, Dad?" he heard Peter ask. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his earpiece that connected to JARVIS, placing it shakily in his ear. 

"Take it easy. Tony..." his friend said, placing a gentle but firm hand on his shoulder, grounding him. 

"Check the heart, check the...check the...is it the brain?" he then said, tapping his ear, hoping JARVIS could explain what was going on. He saw Rhodey stiffen beside him, before turning to distract Peter. 

"No sign of cardiac anomaly or unusual brain activity." JARVIS spoke in his ear, which made no sense. 

"Okay, so I was poisoned?" he asked then, still breathless. He ignored the alarmed look Rhodey sent his way, and tried to slow his breathing. 

"My diagnosis is that you've experienced a severe anxiety attack." JARVIS said then, and Tony paused. 

"Me?" he asked incredulously. He was about to say more when he felt a small tug on his shirt. He looked down to see Peter staring at him with fear in his eyes. 

"Are you okay?" he asked, his voice small. Tony let out a breath, feeling slightly calmer, like JARVIS' diagnosis shocked the panic right out of him. He pulled Peter onto his lap and pressed a kiss to his hair.

"Yeah, Petey, I'm good. Let's finish your drawing huh?" he said, setting Peter back down in his seat, and pulling a new box of crayons from his backpack. Peter seemed content with this answer, and nodded, becoming focused on his drawings once more. He watched him for a bit, until he felt calmer, before turning to Rhodey. 

"What was that man?" his friend whispered worriedly. Tony shook his head. 

"J said it was an anxiety attack." he admitted, having learned his lesson about keeping stuff from his family from the palladium poisoning incident. Rhodey nodded gravely. 

"Have you ever had one before? Does Nat know?" Rhodey asked him. Tony glanced at Peter, who still seemed content, before answering. 

"No I haven't. And I'll tell her." he said, not taking his eyes of Peter. Rhodey gave him a sigh, before squeezing his shoulder. 

"You better. Or I will." he said. Tony nodded, letting out another shaky breath at the mention of his wife, wishing she was home already. 

\---

"Tony?" she called, walking into the lab, looking around in concern. She felt unease creep in, until she spotted her husband sitting at one of his tables. He was bent over and scribbling equations like mad onto a piece of paper in front of him. Which wasn't a good sign, seeing as her husband only used paper and pencil when he was frustrated. 

"Tony?" she tried again, coming to stand next to him. He started and looked up, arms out in front of him like he was under attack. She gave him a moment to get his bearings, and once he realized it was her, he dropped his hands with a sigh. 

"Tash?" he asked, voice scratchy. She furrowed her brows in concern, as he stood up to stand in front of her.

"Yes, love. I'm home." she said quietly, and a relieved grin broke across his face as he pulled her into a hug. She could feel him trembling slightly, and she frowned. When he pulled away she ran an assessing look over his features. There were dark bags under both of his eyes, looking as though he had broken his nose. His cheekbones were sticking out more than usual, and his eyes were a bit hollower. His skin was pale, and his eyes had a glassy sheen to them. 

"Baby." she whispered, holding up her hands to cup his face. He let out a tired sigh and closed his eyes, leaning into her touch. 

"I thought I told you to take care of yourself." she reprimanded softly, though she wanted to be stern, but it didn't seem like that was what he needed at the moment. She watched as her husband took a few shaky breaths and swallowed a few times. When he finally looked at her, he was staring at her with tumultuous brown eyes. 

"I'm a piping hot mess." was all he said, a failed attempt at humor when his voice cracked halfway through. She nodded, taking his hands and leading him to the couch in the corner of his lab. 

"Okay, tell me what's wrong." she said, making sure he could hear the no argument tone in her voice, despite her whispering. He turned his gaze down to his hands. 

"Nothing's been the same since New York." he finally choked out, she squeezed his hand, but stayed quiet so he could continue. 

"You experience things and then they're over, and you still can't explain them? Gods, aliens, other dimensions? I'm just a man in a can." he said, a slightly bitter tone in his voice, causing her heart to clench.

"The only reason I haven't cracked up is probably because Peter needs me, you need me. Which is great. I love you. I'm lucky. But honey, I can't sleep. You go on missions, I put Peter to bed and I come down here. I do what I know. I tinker. I.." he cuts off, swallowing thickly. "The threat is imminent. And I have to protect the two things that I can't live without. That's you. Peter." he stops, looking like he wouldn't be able to say any more without breaking down.

She stays silent for a moment, trying to figure out the best way to approach this. He was vulnerable, and she knew when he was like this he felt weak, and he hated that. It was a very sensitive situation. 

"What brought this on?" she whispered, running her thumb over the knuckles of his hands, which her still held in hers. His eyes tracked the movement for a minute, before he continued.

"The wormhole." he said, his voice choked. She felt her heart skip a beat in her chest, but she pushed the worry down, and focused on the way her husband's breath was hitching in his chest. A panic attack, she realized. Rhodey had warned her, but she hadn't known how bad it really was. 

She pulled her husband into her arms, and started swaying them gently back and forth, shushing him gently. They stayed that way for what felt like hours, before Tony finally calmed down. He pulled away, and patiently let her wipe the tears from his face. 

"Whatever this is, we can work through it together. You just have to tell me." she said softly, and he nodded. 

"I know. I'm sorry. It's just it didn't seem bad before, and now with the Mandarin stuff..." he started saying, but she held up a hand to stop him. 

"What Mandarin stuff?" she asked. He raised his eyebrows, but pulled up a hologram with all of the details. 

"I thought you knew." he said quietly, watching as she quickly took in all of the information from the pages. When she was done, she let out a shaky sigh, and turned back to him. He still looked wrecked, but there was a bit of relief in his eyes as he looked at her. 

"Okay. I'm going to call Clint, have him take Peter. That way, whatever this is, he's safe." she said, and Tony nodded, dropping his head into the crook of her shoulder. 

"I'm so happy you're back." he said quietly. She smiled softly, rubbing his back slowly, as she sent a text to Clint. 

\---

"Thanks for doing this." Tony said as he handed Clint the last bag for Peter. Clint scoffed. 

"What do you mean? I love the little squirt, I've been meaning to steal him from you anyway." he said, winking at the boy, who was currently standing behind Tony's legs. He smiled as Peter let out a small giggle. 

"Seriously, thank you Clint." he said again, hoping the archer could hear the gratefulness in his voice. 

"Just because we are grateful, doesn't mean you can teach Peter archery." a voice chimed from behind him, as Natasha came strolling over. He felt the usual calm rush over him at her presence. Clint spluttered for a moment, before rolling his eyes. 

"You guys are no fun. I'll be in the car kiddo." he said, directing the last bit at Peter, who nodded with a smile. 

"Are you sure you don't mind hanging out at Clint's house for a bit?" Tony asked, kneeling down in front of his son. "I feel like all we ever do is send you away." he said, a rock sinking to the bottom of his stomach. But to his surprise Peter just smiled. 

"You only send me away when you do superhero stuff, so it's not ALL the time. And I like Uncle Clint, he's funny." Peter said, patting Tony's hand reassuringly. Tony gaped at his son for a minute, while Natasha snickered behind him. 

"When did you get so mature?" he teased, and Peter giggled. 

"When I turned 8, old man." he shot back with a giggle, and Tony couldn't help the surprised laugh that came out of his mouth. Natasha smiled, and knelt down next to him, so she was at Peter's height too. 

"Well, stop growing up. I don't like it." she said, blowing a raspberry into his cheek. He scrunched up his nose and pushed her away. 

"Mama, I know my name is Peter, but I'm not actually Peter Pan." he said, with an attitude that could match a teenager. Now it was his wife's turn to gape. Tony laughed. 

"Okay Petey, stop sassing your mother. Give me a hug." he said, and Peter giggled before launching into his arms. He squeezed him tight, then let him go, and watched as he did the same with Natasha. 

"Okay, be good for Clint. We will see you in a couple days." he said, helping Peter into the car. 

"Yes, sir! Love you Dad, love you Mama." he said, waving at them through the open window. 

"Love you, bug." they both said, waving to him too, standing side by side until the car was out of view. 

"Okay, where do we start?" Natasha asked, turning to him. 

\---

He let out a shaky breath as he sped away from the hospital. Happy was in there. Happy was hurt, and it was his fault. He should have told Happy not to go after those guys. He should have known better. He should have protected him. And maybe giving the world his address on national TV wasn't a good idea, but he wasn't really thinking straight. 

He was almost home when his phone rang, and JARVIS automatically put it through, not even giving him a chance to ignore it. 

"I go into work for one hour, and you are giving our address to a terrorist?" Natasha's angry voice filled the car. Tony sighed. 

"I know. It was stupid. I'm sorry." he said, hoping if he jumped right to the apology it would appease her. 

"No Tony, sorry isn't going to cut it. You're just lucky Peter isn't home. I know you feel guilty about Happy, but that's not your fault. And going all crazy and threatening a terrorist? Not your best move." she replied, voice tight. Guilt pooled in his gut at what he had just done, but he hadn't thought, he just reacted. 

"I know. Tasha, I just..." he said, voice shaky and he could hear his wife let out a tired sigh. 

"I know Tony. I know. It's fine, we'll figure it out. Pepper is on her way to the mansion right now. She is going to help you pack and hide any evidence of me and Peter, then you guys are going to go to a safe house okay?" his wife said then, voice all business. He nodded, before remembering she couldn't see him. 

"Yeah. We can put all your stuff in my suit storage, no one can get in there." he mused out loud, forming a plan in his head. 

"Okay, good idea. Now go. Listen to Pepper. And be safe. Promise me you won't do anything drastic." she said then, and he could hear the slight tremble of fear in her voice. 

"I'll try. I love you." he said as he pulled up to the mansion, already spotting Pepper's car, and a few news helicopters. 

"I love you too. I'll meet you guys at the safe house in a couple hours." Natasha said, before the line went dead. He let out a sigh and entered the house. 

Lucky for him, he managed to get all of his family's stuff hidden away, and got a little work done, before his mansion was blown to hell. At least he got Pepper out safe.

\---

_I know you said not to do anything stupid. But this time it wasn't my fault. I got Pepper out, she's with a woman I met years ago, Maya Hansen, they should both be safe. Pepper should know where the safe house is, so she will be there. But I can't come quite yet. I need to find this guy. You gotta stay safe. That's all I know. I know you are going to want to follow me, but baby if something happens, you need to be there for Peter. Stay safe, I'll find you when this is all over. I mean I know you probably won't listen, but I had to try. I love you. I just stole a poncho from a wooden Indian._

He slumped down on the couch in the shed he broke into to, catching his breath. He turned to the Iron man suit sitting next to him. 

"You happy now?" he asked, not knowing if he was aiming it at the suit or himself. He was definitely in a mess. He hoped Natasha would listen to him, and let him handle this, and stay safe. But he also knew she wouldn't. He let out a sigh, and moved to sit at what looked like a workbench. 

"Freeze! Don't move." a small voice said, he looked up slowly and saw a kid who looked a bit older than Peter, standing in the doorway aiming a toy gun at him. Tony held back a smile. 

"You got me. Nice potato gun. Barrel's a little long. Between that and the wide gauge, it's gonna diminish your FPS." he said, hoping he could earn the boy's trust by treating him like an adult. It usually worked with Peter. The boy glared at him, and aimed his gun up high, and shot a piece of glass off a high shelf. It was impressive. "And now you're out of ammo." Tony said, watching as the boy realized his mistake. 

"What's that thing on your chest?" the boy asked next, eyes drifting to the blue light showing through his shirt. 

"It's an electromagnet. You should know, you've got a box of them right here." he said, tapping a box on what he figured was the kid's worktable, if the scattered potato gun pieces were any indication. 

"What does it power?" the kid asked curiously, all past trepidation gone. Tony stood up and stepped to the side, shining the desk lamp on the suit behind him. He smiled a bit as he watched the kid's face drop in amazement. 

"That...that's... Is that Iron Man?" the kid asked hesitantly, moving closer. Tony had to fight down a pang in his chest, when Harley's reaction reminded him so much of his son. 

"Technically, I am." he replied, watching as the kid hid his amazement, and looked at him with a deadpan expression. 

"Technically, you're dead." the kid replied, handing him a newspaper, before heading to the couch. He looked down at the paper, and saw that he was in fact being presumed dead. He felt his worry spike, hoping Clint had enough sense to keep Peter from the news. He was sure Tasha had warned him by now. He shook away his thoughts, and turned back to the kid who was studying the suit. 

"A valid point." he said. 

"What happened to him?" Harley asked, still admiring the suit, but noticing the damage. Tony winced a bit at the work cut out for him. 

"Life. I built him, I take care of him, I'll fix him." he said, sitting down on a chair, keeping his eyes on the boy. 

"Like a mechanic?" the boy asked, a hint of excitement in his voice, which reminded him of how Peter sounded whenever Tony showed him something new in the lab. 

"Yeah." he answered, figuring being a mechanic was easier to explain. The kid straightened a bit and turned to him, a gleam in his eyes. 

"Well, if I was building Iron Man and War Machine..." the kid started. 

"It's Iron Patriot now." he interrupted, somewhat bitterly. The kid beamed. 

"That's way cooler!" he exclaimed, and Tony scoffed playfully. 

"No, it's not." he said, petulantly. The kid just looked at him in amusement before continuing. 

"Anyways, I would have added in um... the retro..." the kid said, starting to struggle with remembering the words. 

"Retro-reflective panels?" Tony helped curiously, and the kid nodded enthusiastically. 

"To make him stealth mode." he agreed, nodding his head. 

"You want a stealth mode?" Tony asked curiously, actually impressed at how smart this kid seemed to be. He must have broken into the right garage. 

"Cool, right?" the kid said then, and Tony could feel his excitement. Tony smiled. 

"That's actually a good idea. Maybe I'll build one." he said, having to stop himself from starting schematics in his mind. He watched as the kid started playing with the armor's hand, and winced a bit when he broke a finger off. 

"Oops..." the kid said, looking at him with a slight fear in his eyes. Tony shrugged patiently, being used to broken things with Peter.

"Don't worry about it, I'll fix it." he said with a smile, not missing how the kid let out a breath of relief when he wasn't mad. "So, uh, who's home?" he asked then, deciding it was time for a game plan, and if this kid was as smart as he seemed, he could help. 

"Well, my mom already left for the diner and dad went to 7-Eleven to get scratchers. I guess he won,'cause that was six years ago." the kid answered, bitterly, rubbing his nose. This took Tony a bit by surprise, but he swallowed it down and gave the kid a sympathetic smile. 

"Mm. Gotta hate when that happens. Sorry kid. You wanna help me out a bit?" Tony said, hoping he could distract the kid from his sucky dad. The kid nodded with excitement. 

"Here's what I need: a laptop, a digital watch, a cell phone, the pneumatic actuator from your bazooka over there, a map of town, a big spring, and a tuna fish sandwich." Tony said then, watching as the kid nodded to keep up with him. 

"What's in it for me?" the kid asked then, and Tony smiled, studying the kid for a few moments. 

"Salvation. What's his name?" Tony asked, knowing he hit the mark when the kid hunched in on himself a bit. He had enough experience with both him and Peter to know exactly what the kid was going through. 

"Who?" the kid asked, feigning ignorance. 

"The kid that bullies you at school, what's his name?" he said then, cutting to the chase. The kid's face dropped. 

"How'd you know that?" he asked quietly, clearly not wanting to talk about it, so Tony let it go. 

"I got just the thing." he said, moving to his suit and opening a compartment. He pulled out what he was looking for and held it in front of the kid's face. "This is a pinata for a cricket. I'm kidding, it's a very powerful weapon. Point it away from your face, press the button on top. It discourages bullying. Non-lethal, just to cover one's ass. Deal? Deal? What'd you say?" he asked, smiling as he moved his hand around so the kid couldn't grab it. 

"Deal." the kid said, smiling when Tony gave him the object. 

"What's you're name?" he asked then, realizing he hadn't asked. 

"Harley. And you're..." the kid asked politely, and Tony gave him a smile. 

"The mechanic. Tony." he said, and then he looked at the kid for a moment. "You know what keeps going through my head? Where's my sandwich?" he says, feeling something warm in his chest when Harley grinned up at him. 

\---

She rushed through the door of the safe house, and was met with Pepper and who she assumed was the Maya Hansen Tony mentioned. She ignored their questioning gazes and went to check all the exits and the perimeter. Once she was done and considered them safe, for the moment, she walked back into the room. 

"Have you heard from Tony?" Pepper asked, as soon as she walked into the room. She ignored her and turned to Maya.

"You have five seconds to explain to me who you are, or you are going to regret it." Natasha said, her voice cold. Maya looked at her up and down with a glint of fear in her eyes, but Natasha didn't care. She saw Pepper stand up and approach her cautiously from the side. 

"Nat, it's okay. She was coming to warn us that her boss works for the Mandarin." she said, softly, placing a gentle hand on Natasha's shoulder. She narrowed her eyes at the woman, before turning to Pepper. 

"Tony left me a message. He's following a lead. I have to go see if I can help him, but I know he would want me to make sure you were safe." she said, and Pepper slumped in relief. 

"I knew he would be fine. Okay. I was going to take Maya to my apartment, lay low for a while, can you let me know if you find Tony?" Pepper asked, and Natasha narrowed her eyes again. 

"You're at a safe house and you want to leave?" she asked Pepper incredulously. Pepper for her part did look a little reprimanded. 

"Right we will stay here." she said, and Natasha nodded. She reached into her pocket and brought out a small device. She glanced at Maya for a minute, before pulling Pepper into the next room. 

"Take this, if she turns on you, press the button and it will track your location. Put it in your bra." Natasha said, and Pepper rolled her eyes but nodded. 

"You really think she's on their side?" Pepper asked, and Natasha sighed.

"I don't know, but you can never be sure. Now if you'll excuse me I'm going to go try and find my husband." she said, and walked out of the house, without looking back. 

She knew Tony was going to kill her when he found out she left them alone, especially when she learned that Maya did turn on them, and her boss took Pepper, before Natasha could stop it. She could only blame herself, she let herself get compromised, her fear for her husband taking priority over her training. Now she just hoped she could find Tony and right her mistake.

\---

"How many suits did you actually have?" Natasha asked the next night, after the entire Mandarin fiasco happened, and he blew up his suits. He had spent all day fixing Pepper, before finally trudging upstairs to where Natasha was waiting for Clint to arrive with Peter. He sent her a guilty look before answering, turning his attention back to the elevator. They had flown straight to the tower in New York, having lost the Malibu house. 

"42..." he said quietly. Natasha nodded her head. His PTSD had been worse than she thought, and she had been leaving him alone for missions. She felt a twinge of guilt in her stomach. 

"I'm going to tell Fury I'm done running missions." she said, instead of commenting on his suits. He started and turned his attention to her. 

"Why?" he asked, eyes wide in surprise. She gave him a sad smile. 

"Because I'm realizing that this is where I need to be." she said, pulling him down so he was laying his head in her lap. He looked up at her with misty eyes, and furrowed his eyebrows. 

"You don't need to do that for me. I'm fine." he said, but it wasn't very convincing. She ran her fingers through his hair gently a few times. She felt something warm in her chest when he closed his eyes and leaned into her touch. She stared down at him lovingly, before leaning down and pressing a kiss to his forehead. He scrunched his nose, and opened his eyes to look at her, and she could see the love he had for her reflecting in them. 

"I know. I want to. I don't want to be away from this anymore." she said quietly, and he brushed a kiss to her knuckles with a serene smile. 

"I think that would be great. I miss having you around all the time." Tony said after a few moments, and she could hear the twinge of sadness in his voice. She nodded. 

"Then it's settled. I'm done with missions." she said then, and she knew she had made the right decision when Tony graced her with a blinding smile. It was her favorite kind of smile, because it was the one he reserved for just her and Peter, the one that held no trace of the mask he kept for the media. 

"I love you." she whispered, before their quiet moment was ruined by the elevator, announcing the presence of her son and idiot best friend. Tony winked at her, before sitting back up and scooping Peter into his arms. She smiled at the scene and turned to Clint.

"Thanks for watching him, Birdbrain." she said, giving him a hug. He shrugged. 

"No problem. But you owe me, next time, I don't want to be left out of all the fun." her friend said with a wink. She rolled her eyes, and turned back to her family.   
\---

BLACK WIDOW AND IRON MAN WILL RETURN 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did you think? Let me know in the comments!
> 
> And if there is any particular scenes you want to see in the upcoming movies leave your ideas in the comments!
> 
> I hope you enjoyed it!


	6. Post credit scene

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> just a little post credit thing...hope you enjoy!

"Steve!" he heard Peter yell from the living room. He raised his eyebrows at his wife, who was standing across from him, supervising his breakfast making. She gave him a shrug, before helping him take everything off the heat, and leading the way into the next room. 

He watched as Steve swung Peter up onto his hip with ease, a smile on his face as he addressed him. Bruce and Thor were standing behind him, looking curiously at Clint, who was sitting on the couch in his boxers, still working on whatever Lego contraption Peter had been showing him. He didn't even look up to acknowledge anyone. Tony walked further into the room. 

"Not that I don't pretend to tolerate you people, but what's with the surprise visit?" he asked, coming around to stand next to Barton, who looked up in surprise. 

_Hearing aids on, we got guests._ Tony signed to him. Clint's eyes widened as he turned to see the team, hand moving to his ears. 

"We saw everything on the news, but it all happened so fast, and no one would give us any intel...we wanted to make sure you guys were all okay." Steve said, looking between him and Natasha with concern. 

"Hey, Pete. Why don't you take Thor to the kitchen and get the good pop-tarts for the guests?" Tony said, looking at his son, who was still settled on Steve's hips. Peter nodded excitedly, reaching out to Thor, who took him without question, heading to the kitchen.

"He doesn't know anything happened." Tony explained quietly, and Steve and Bruce nodded. He motioned for them all to sit, and they settled around on the couches. 

"Are you guys' okay though? I swear if we could have been there to help...you should have called us, Tony." Steve said then, his face serious with concern. Tony looked at Natasha with pleading eyes. She nodded. 

"It's okay guys. It all happened so fast, I don't think we would have had time to wait for backup. But we are all safe. Everything is good." she said softly, and he watched as Steve's shoulders relaxed at her words. 

"Here you go!" Peter's voice broke the silence as him and Thor swept back into the room, and began to hand out pop-tarts. They all thanked him with small smiles on their faces. He smiled, watching as Peter settled in next to Bruce, when he was done passing out food, and began to explain his newest Lego project. Bruce nodded seriously, paying attention to Peter's every word. 

"You guys cool if we crash your party here? I mean it's my tower so you have to say yes, but we are thinking of moving here permanently." Tony said after a while, and Steve looked at him with humor in his eyes. 

"As long as you're bringing Peter." he said, and Tony laughed. 

"The disrespect. Can you believe this? In my own tower?" Tony said, a hand on his chest in mock offense. He heard Clint snort from the floor in front of him, still playing with the building blocks. He sent a kick at the man, who dodged it without looking. 

"Hey at least I's not lounging around in just my underwear, playing with kids toys." Tony said, rolling his eyes. Clint turned to him with a wink, before flicking his hand to his ears. Tony let his mouth drop open, pointing at the man and turning to his wife. 

"That's unfair. That's just childish. Tash tell him he can't just turn his hearing aids off whenever he doesn't want to listen to me. I will not stand for such mistreatment of my tech." Tony said, his voice coming out like a childish whine, earning him a raised eyebrow from his wife. 

"I'm not getting involved. Work it out between yourselves." she deadpanned at him. Tony gasped in offense, before crossing his arms, and sending another dodged kick at the archer. 

"I can't believe I'm friends with you people." he mumbled, petulantly. He could hear Steve and Bruce laughing quietly at his antics, but he chose to ignore them. 

"Yeah having you guys at the tower should be interesting." Steve said then, causing the room to laugh. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think!


	7. Captain America: The Winter Soldier

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry. I didn't think it would take me so long to update. Sorry! 
> 
> This is mostly Natasha's point of view, since Tony isn't really in this movie, but he is now just small parts. 
> 
> This is also where I kinda am going into uncharted territory more than I already am, I'm kind of changing the story lines and you will see what I mean. So the movies from now on will be slightly the same but possibly different...we shall see. 
> 
> Also I don't know the time tables for the movies completely, so I made my own? Hope that's okay. This is two years after Ironman 3. 
> 
> Enjoy!

Natasha put the last of her weapons in the duffel bag and zipped it up, finally looking up to see the figure that had been looming in the doorway. She could see the pain in his eyes as they stared unfocused at the duffel bag beneath her hands. She let out a small sigh, and walked slowly over to him, placing her hands on either side of his face. The brown orbs finally snapped up to meet her green ones. 

"I know." she whispered, and she saw him clench his jaw, shifting his head out of her grip, taking a step back. She could feel the hurt coming off of him in waves. 

"You said you were done. What makes this so different?" his voice comes out hard and raw. She swallows her own hurt at his tone, and crosses her arms over her chest, watching him warily. 

"Nick seems to think there's something happening in SHIELD, he won't tell me much." Tony scoffs and begins pacing the room, but she continues. "There's agents being held captive on a ship, he's sending Steve to get the hostages...he's sending me to get information." she said, her eyes tracing his movements back and forth. He seemed to process the words for a moment, before turning on her. She could see the panic in his eyes that he was trying to mask with anger. 

"And why can't Capsicle just get the info, why does it have to be you?" Tony asks, jaw clenched tightly, his shoulders tense. Natasha sighs, before retreating to sit down on the edge of the bed. 

"You know Rogers wouldn't risk people for information. Nick says I'm the only one he trusts to get it. You know I wouldn't be going if it wasn't important." she says, her voice taking on a begging tone, all she wanted was for him to understand. 

"What about Clint?" he asked then, but she could tell he was getting tired of fighting. She raised her eyebrow at him. 

"You know as well as I do where Clint should be right now, and it's not on a pirate ship with Captain America." she says simply, watching as all the fight drains from her husband and he comes to kneel in front of her, their faces almost level with each others. He looks up, staring at her for a moment, before closing his eyes, and dropping his head to her lap, her hands automatically going to his hair. 

"I know. I just...I like it better when I know you're safe." she could hear him mumble into her thighs. She runs her fingers through his hair a few times, feeling him melt into the touch. 

"I know. This is the last time, okay? And it's just a routine extraction. I'm sure it will go off without a hitch." she says, and he nods, before the door bursts open. 

"Mama! Dad!" the small voice screams, and Natasha has to hold in her laughter as Tony jumps and looks at their son incredulously. 

"I liked you better when you were quieter." he mumbled, standing up and sitting next to her on the bed instead, his attention now on the small boy walking up to them.

"Liar. You said you like my personality." the 10-year old replies, with a smirk too reminiscent of the man next to her's. She watches as Tony lets out a tired and dramatic sigh. 

"Sure, kid. How can your lovely parents be of service today?" Tony said, his hand rubbing his left arm. She narrowed her eyes slightly at him, before her lap was suddenly filled with a bouncing kid. She turned to him, keeping her face straight as he bounced in excitement. 

"Yes?" she asks calmly, causing Peter to let out a string of giggles.

"Well, Dad said you're leaving for a mission, and promised we could show you my project downstairs before you go." her son said, and she could hear the excitement in his voice. 

"Well, if Dad said so, I guess we should listen huh, bug?" she asked conspiratorially, sending her husband a wink, which he childishly returned by sticking his tongue out. Peter cheered and grabbed their hands, leading them to the lab. 

\---

"Hey bug, Mama's on her way home. What do you say you go clean yourself up and get your pj's on before she gets here, yeah? Maybe we can talk her into a movie night." Tony said, looking up from his phone that relayed the message that his wife was on her way home. Peter's curls bounced up and down as he nodded, quickly putting his drawing stuff away and running off. 

"You better be in that shower for at least 10 minutes, young man! And wash your hair!" Tony yelled after him, hearing a small yell of agreement coming from down the hall. He heard the elevator, and stood up quickly. Natasha was making her way over to the living room, after dropping her bags by the door. He could see the slight limp she was trying to hide, and the exhaustion in her eyes. 

"Tash?" he called softly, and she looked up letting a small smile grace her face when she spotted him. She walked over and he wrapped his arms around her as tightly as he could without hurting her, breathing in her scent.

"You're hurt." he said, making sure she knew it wasn't a question, and that he already knew the answer. 

"Steve got curious, we got distracted. There was an explosion, but I'm fine." she said quietly, holding him back just as tightly. When he finally pulled away, he looked at her trying to catch if she was hiding anymore injuries from him. She seemed to be able to tell what he was doing because she squeezed his hand, and led him to the couch. 

"I just messed my ankle up, that's it I promise." she said, and he searched her face for a few moments, before nodding. 

"Okay. Good. Pete's showering, then he wanted a movie night." Tony said, settling back on the couch, trying to calm his anxious heart. He didn't realize he was squeezing his left wrist sporadically until Natasha grabbed his right hand in hers.

"I'm okay." she repeated, and he nodded shakily. She let out a sigh and just brought him into a hug. He felt himself calm down slowly as time went on, before they were again interrupted. 

"Cuddle pile!" Peter said happily, and wiggled his way in between them. Tony felt his heart unclench and he let out a laugh, sharing a fond look with his wife over their child's head. 

"What's this I hear about a movie?" Natasha then said, helping them all settle onto the couch. 

It was early in the morning, when Tony felt his shoulder being shook awake. He jumped up, heart pounding in his ears. He looked around wildly, heart calming slightly at the sight of Peter still sleeping on the couch next to him. He looked around more, and saw Natasha standing next to him, an unreadable look on her face. 

"What happened?" he whispered, getting up to follow her when she headed to the kitchen. 

"Nick was...he was attacked. Maria called, he's in the hospital. It...it sounded bad, Tony." she whispered when they got to the kitchen. Tony immediately moved closer and pulled her into a hug. 

"You need to go." he said, already knowing what she was thinking. She nodded quickly, taking a deep breath. He gave her time to compose herself, until she pulled away, her face back to it's unreadable mask. 

"Go." he said, and she nodded again, before rushing out of the room. Tony let out a breath and fell down into the stool behind him. He had a uneasy feeling in his stomach that this was the beginning of something bad. 

"J, can you keep an eye on things at SHIELD and on Tash. Let me know if anything freaky is going on." he said into the empty kitchen. 

"Of course, sir." 

\---

"Is he gonna make it?" she demands as she walks into the observation room. Steve was standing there in the dark, watching as the surgeons worked on Nick. 

"I don't know." the other man said, and Natasha felt her frustration grow. 

"Tell me about the shooter." she demands next. She didn't know what else to do, she didn't know how to process that she could lose Nick. So, she did the next thing she knew how to do, focus on the mission. She wished Tony had come with her, he would have known what to do. 

"He's fast and strong. Had a metal arm." Steve said, Natasha felt her breath stutter a bit at the description before she felt Maria walk up next to her. It couldn't be..

"Ballistics?" she says, voice no more than a whisper. If her theory was correct...

"Three slugs, no rifling. Completely untraceable." Maria's voice said coldly. Natasha felt her blood run cold. 

"Soviet-made." Natasha finished, confirming what she had thought. 

"Yeah." Maria said, and Natasha could hear the question in her voice, but Natasha was more focused on what was happening behind the glass.

"He's in V-tach." 

"Crash cart coming in."

"Nurse, help me with the drape."

"BP is dropping."

"Defibrillator! I want you to charge him at one hundred." 

"Don't do this to me, Nick." Natasha felt herself whisper. She felt far away from her body as she listened to the chaos. 

"Stand back! Three, two, one. Clear! Pulse?"

"No pulse." 

"No pulse." 

"Okay. 200, please. Stand back! Three, two, one. Clear! Give me epinephrine! Pulse?" 

"Negative." 

A numb feeling comes over her as the heart monitor lets out a continuous beep. 

"What's the time?" 

"1:03, Doctor." 

"Time of death, 1:03 a.m." Natasha feels nothing but cold anger settle into her veins. She can feel her hands shaking and she wills them to stop. She follows numbly when they lead them to the room with his body. She barely registers the tears falling down her face as she looks down at the man, who looks way too small. 

"I need to take him." she registers a voice say, but she doesn't move. She feels a presence appear closer to her.

"Natasha." it was Steve, and suddenly her anger reappears full force. She touches Nick's head softly, before exiting the room, knowing he would follow. 

"Natasha!" she hears him call from behind her, she keeps walking a few steps before rounding on him. 

"Why was Fury in your apartment?" she spits out, she can see him fumbling for a lie, while trying to keep his face straight. 

"I don't know." he replies and she wants to scoff at the attempt. 

"Cap, they want you back at SHIELD." she turns her gaze to Rumlow standing down the hallway, before looking back at Steve, who let out a sigh. 

"Yeah, give me a second." he replied, looking like he was about to say more to her before getting interrupted again. 

"They want you now." She watches as Steve clenches his jaw. 

"Okay." he bites out, turning back to her. But she didn't want to hear the lies he was about to feed her. 

"You're a terrible liar." she says, before walking off. She quickly finds an empty room, hitting the scrambler on her bracelet before reaching for her phone with shaking hands. 

It only takes two rings before the voice she's been longing for fills her ears. 

"Tasha, what happened?" Tony's voice filters through the receiver. She lets his voice calm her down slightly, before she responds. 

"He's dead." she says, her voice sounds rough, and she has to swallow the lump that suddenly forms in her throat. She can hear Tony's breath catch on the other line, and can practically feel his anxiety and concern. 

"Tash. Are you okay?" he finally asks, his voice soft, but with a slight tremble. She lets out a breath, unsure how to answer.

"I don't know." she says honestly, and she can hear him hum in understanding.

"What do you know?" he asks next, voice patient. She feels the guilt settle in her stomach. 

"I have to find out who did this." she said, voice sounding emotionless, more calculated. 

"Okay. I don't like it, but okay. What can I do?" he asks after a couple moments of silence. She could hear his anxiety filled voice, she knew after New York and everything with AIM, that he was more anxious when he couldn't protect her. But she knew what she had to do. 

"Keep Peter safe." she says, pushing down the guilt and sadness, getting focused on her mission. 

"Always. Please be safe, Tash. I love you." he breathes out shakily. 

"I love you, too." she says, before ending the call. 

\---

"Where did Captain America learn how to steal a car?" she asks, breaking the silence as they drive. She sees a smirk form on Steve's face. 

"Nazi Germany." he deadpans, and she wants to laugh but she keeps in in, coming off unimpressed. 

"Mm." she hums. 

"And we're borrowing. Take your feet off the dash." he says then, sounding like the old man that he was. She rolls her eyes but complies. She looks at how much longer they have to drive, and decides to pass the time. 

"Alright, I have a question for you, oh, which you do not have to answer. I feel like if you don't answer it though, you're kind of answering it, you know?" she starts to say, letting herself ramble, to come off more friendly. Steve shakes his head at her. 

"What?" he asks, pretending to be annoyed. 

"Was that your first kiss since 1945?" she teases, and enjoys the uncomfortable look that crosses his face. 

"That bad, huh?" he asks then, and she smiles. 

"I didn't say that." she defends, but he doesn't buy it.

"Well, it kind of sounds like that's what you're saying." he shoots back, and she turns her attention the road in front of them. 

"No, I didn't. I just wondered how much practice you've had." she says, continuing the teasing. It felt nice to not be so serious for a bit. 

"You don't need practice." he says, somewhat defensively. 

"Everybody needs practice." she says like it's obvious. 

"It was not my first kiss since 1945. I'm ninety-five, I'm not dead." he says then, in a fake firm voice. She rolls her eyes before he continues. "What would Tony say about that kiss?" he asks, a smirk on his face like he had just pulled the rug out from under her. She snorts. 

"He'd probably ask who was a better kisser." she replies, earning a laugh out of the other man. She grows quiet for a moment, thoughts caught on Tony. Steve seems to sense that something is wrong, because he speaks up a minute later. 

"Nat? You okay?" he asks. She nods absently, before he speaks again. "Is everything okay with you and Tony?" he asks softly. Normally she would bristle at the mention of her family, but she had to remind herself that Steve was safe. 

"Yeah, yeah. I'm just worried about him." she says, playing with a loose thread on her jeans. Steve stays silent though, waiting for her to continue. She sighs, before continuing. 

"He's not a soldier, or a spy like us. I think all of this stuff is taking a toll on him. And I don't think he's handling it very well. And I don't know how I'm supposed to help him." she says, surprising herself with her honestly. Steve hums in thought for a moment. 

"I think you help him more than you know. I've seen you two together. You're his world. As long as your there to pull him back, he'll be okay." Steve said, and Natasha felt guilt churn in her stomach. 

"Then let's make sure I get back there in one piece huh?" she says then, and Steve looks at her with a determined smile. 

"Will do, Agent." he says, pressing the gas a bit harder. 

\---

"You okay?" she looked up from the ground she had been staring at, thoughts running a mile a minute. She quickly schooled her face to hide any emotion, continuing to dry her hair with the towel.

"Yeah." she said, and cursed herself when she didn't sound very convincing. Steve noticed too because he sighed and walked into the room. 

"What's going on?" he asked softly, eyes boring into hers. She let out a small sigh. 

"When I first joined SHIELD, I thought I was going straight. But I guess I just traded in the KGB for HYDRA. I thought I knew whose lies I was telling, but...I guess I can't tell the difference anymore." she said, voicing just some of the thoughts that had been running through her mind. 

"There's a chance you might be in the wrong business." he replied with a small smirk, and she sends him a small grateful smile.

"I owe you." she says then, changing the subject.

"It's okay." he replies, and she feels a little annoyed with how kind this man was all of the time. 

"If it was the other way around, and it was down to me to save your life, and you be honest with me, would you trust me to do it?" she asked then, a fear of hers bubbling up to the surface, demanding an answer. Steve looked thoughtful for a moment, before answering. 

"There was a time when I wouldn't have. But ever since you and Tony shared your life with us, your biggest secret, I would. You're a better person than you think you are. And I'm always honest." he says, knocking shoulders with her with his last comment. She felt something simultaneously ease and tighten inside her at the mention of her family. She wondered what Tony was feeling right now. 

"Well, you seem pretty chipper for someone who just found out they died for nothing." she says, shaking off those thoughts. Steve rolls his eyes at her and stands up. 

"Well, I guess I just like to know who I'm fighting. And you should call Tony. Make sure he knows you're okay." Steve says then, looking at her sympathetically. She just shakes her head. 

"With everything going on, I don't want to put him in any more danger than he already is." she said, hoping she was making the right decision. She could tell by the look on Steve's face that he didn't agree with her, but he nodded, before Sam showed up in the doorway. 

\---

"What the hell is going on? Jarvis sent me the footage! You got shot?! Why didn't you call me? Why haven't you called?" his voice was raising slowly with every word and he knew it, but his emotions were running to high for him to control it. He heard her let out a sigh on the other line. 

"I couldn't call. I didn't want to risk your safety. And I'm fine. I got hit in the shoulder, but it's already taken care of. I'm sorry." she said, and he could hear the exhaustion in her voice, as well as the guilt. He let out a shaky breath, and tried to reign back in his emotions. 

"Okay. Okay. Fine. Are you sure you are okay? Why are you calling now?" he asked then, trying to get his head around the situation. 

"I'm okay, I promise. But something big is about to happen, and I'm going to need you to do something for me." his wife's voice came out serious and stern. He felt himself straighten in his seat and send a glance to the other side of the workshop where their son was sleeping on his couch. 

"Anything." he said, his voice clipped and all business. He could sense the pride Natasha felt for him, and he let himself smile a bit. 

"SHIELD's been compromised, and we have to do something drastic." his wife replied, and he knew she was being vague on purpose. The less he knew, the less other people could find out through him. 

"Do I need to get the suit?" he asked then, fully prepared to send a text to Pepper to watch Peter. 

"No. I need you to make sure all data about us is safe. Nowhere near SHIELD's. And make sure you can protect as much data for everyone else as you can. The people we trust, keep their data safe." she said, and Tony had to admit he felt a little confused. 

"I can do that. I have private servers I can use. I'll make sure everyone is safe. How much time do I have?" he asked then. 

"A couple hours." she replied, and Tony felt a bit of panic fill him at not knowing what kind of danger she was throwing herself in, but he pushed it down. 

"Got it." he said, and soon the line clicked dead, and he got to work. 

\---

"Why haven't we yet heard from Captain Rogers?" the Committee General asked. She was sitting in, answering for the actions that happened after Project Insight. She smirked, channeling her husband. 

"I don't know what there is left left for him to say. I think the wreck in the middle of the Potomac made his point fairly eloquently." she said, and she could see the vein pop in the man's forehead. She tried not to take too much pleasure in it. 

"Well, he could explain how this country's expected to maintain its national security now that he and you have laid waste to our intelligence apparatus." the man said, and Natasha had to keep her expression blank before she rolled her eyes. 

"HYDRA was selling you lies, not intelligence." she said then, tired of having to repeat it. 

"Many of which you seem to have had a personal hand in telling." the man said then, referring to her information that had leaked. She felt pride at how Tony handled the information dump. He seemed to have known that it would have been suspicious if nothing on her was leaked, so he kept their family and anything that could lead to anyone finding out about them safe, but let everything else be exposed. She had to admit she was annoyed she hadn't thought of it. 

"Agent, you should know that there are some on this committee who feel, given your service record, both for this country and against it, that you belong in a penitentiary, not mouthing off on Capitol Hill." the man said then when she didn't say anything. She felt the smirk on her face form without having to try. 

"You're not gonna put me in a prison. You're not gonna put any of us in a prison. You know why?" she said then, knowing how Tony must have felt at that defense hearing so long ago. It felt nice to have the upper hand. 

"Do enlighten us." the man said tiredly. She sneered. 

"Because you need us. Yes, the world is a vulnerable place, and yes, we helped make it that way. But we're also the ones best qualified to defend it. So if you want to arrest me, arrest me. You'll know where to find me." she said then, standing up. She wished she had some of Tony's signature glasses to seal the deal, but she settled for making one of his patented big exits. 

Once she was gone, she headed to where she had agreed to meet Steve, to give him the information he asked for. She saw the last of their conversation with Fury, before he walked off, and she approached them. 

"You should be honored, that's about as close as he gets to saying thank you." she said as way of greeting. Steve turned to her with a smile. 

"Not going with him?" he asked, and she almost wanted to laugh. 

"No." she said with an indulgent smile. 

"Not staying here?" he asked then, like he thought she was going to jump back into the field after one mission back. She shook her head. 

"I blew all my covers, I'm going to go be me for a while. I have some boys who've agreed to keep me company." she said, watching as the realization came to the man. He nodded approvingly. 

"That sounds nice." he replied, sounding genuinely happy for her. 

"It does. That thing you asked for, I called in a few favors from Kiev. Will you do me a favor? Call that nurse." she said with a teasing smile. He shook his head at her in faux annoyance. 

"She's not a nurse." he replied, and she raised an eyebrow at him. 

"And you're not a SHIELD agent." she said, and he nodded gravely. 

"What was her name again?" he asked then jokingly. She shook her head. 

"Sharon. She's nice. Be careful, Steve. You might not want to pull on that thread." she said then, changing the subject, nodding to the file in his hands. He looked down at it as well, letting out a deep breath. 

"I have to." he answered, and she nodded. 

"You need to tell Tony. Everything. He deserves to hear it from you, and it should come from you." she said, seriously. Steve gave her a conflicted look.

"I know. Give me some time to figure out how to break it to him." he said then, and she nodded reaching out and squeezing his arm. 

"Okay. Just tell him." she said, before turning around and walking away. 

\---

"I guess it's true what they say, the couple that pisses off government officials together, stays together." she hears as she steps off the elevator. She rolls her eyes and she walks up to the couch where Tony was sitting with a sleepy Peter sitting next to him. 

"Hey Mama! Dad said you just pulled a Dad on TV. He wouldn't let me watch it though." Peter said, his eyes still half mast with sleep. Natasha smiled at him, picking him up and settling him on her lap. She felt a pang when she realized he would soon be too big for things like this. 

"Oh yes. I channeled my inner Tony Stark to make some very important people listen to me." she said, winking at Peter, who then let out a tired giggle. 

"Did they listen?" he asked then, settling his head on her shoulder and closing his eyes. She ran her fingers through his curly hair and smiled. 

"Yes they did." she answered, and Peter let out a breath, before he was fully asleep on her shoulder. She sat there quietly, enjoying the warmth being around her family brought her. But she knew the moment wouldn't last forever. She knew what she needed to do. Despite what she told Steve, she didn't want Tony to be caught off guard. This way he could be prepared, she wanted to give him the option of controlling his reaction when Steve finally told him. 

"I'll take him to bed." Tony whispered then, looking at her curiously. She nodded absentmindedly and let him take their son out of her hands into his own. He sent her one more look before heading down the hallway. She let out a shaky breath, and ran her hands through her hair a couple times, before reaching down and picking up the extra file she kept. It was identical to the one she gave Steve. 

She heard his footsteps coming back down the hall and she felt herself tense without her permission. All this time off the field was making her soft. She shook her head as she felt him sit down next to her. 

"You did really good at that hearing for real though. I'm really proud of you." he said, settling one of his hands on her knee. She didn't look up at him, only handing him the folder. She could feel his curious gaze on her before he took it and started looking through it. 

"Sargent Barnes is alive? Does Steve know?" he asked looking up at her in shock. She nods and he narrows his eyes at her lack of reaction. She motions for him to keep going. She knows the exact moment when he finds what she knew he could find. His hands tighten around the folder, his shoulders going tight, jaw clenching. She studies him for a moment, before gently taking the folder out of his hands. 

He sits there in silence for a few more minutes, staring at the place where the folder was. She reaches out and touches his shoulder, causing his face to snap up to look at hers. She could see the tears gathering in his eyes. She opened her arms, and he fell into them, body shaking with silent sobs. She could feel her heart breaking into a million pieces as she held her husband as his world fell apart around him. 

She continued to hold him until he eventually passed out from exhaustion a few hours later. She sat there rubbing her hands up and down his back, hoping she had made the right decision in telling him. 

\---

BLACK WIDOW WILL RETURN 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked it? Let me know what you think in the comments below!
> 
> Thank you so much for all your support and for reading this crazy story idea!  
xoxo


	8. Post Credit Scene

"I'm taking off for a bit." Steve said to him as he walked into the lab. Tony looked up quickly at the sudden entrance of the Super Soldier. He knew where Steve was going. Natasha had explained to him that Steve knew, and she had told him to tell Tony about his long lost friend now super assassin. About what he did. She had only told him so he would have the luxury of shielding his true reaction from Steve. He took a deep breath steeling himself for the news the soldier was probably here to tell him. 

"Yeah? Where you headed? Popsicle convention?" Tony asked, turning to look at the man, hoping none of his apprehension was showing on his face. Steve let out a stiff chuckle at his joke before continuing. 

"No. I-uh...well Bucky's alive. I gotta go find him." Steve said, voice tight. Tony nodded. 

"Wow, what are the chances you're best buddy lived this long huh?" Tony said, pretending he didn't know anything, just like Natasha had instructed him to. He could see as Steve wrestled with what to say next, a conflicted look on his face. Finally it turned into one of resignation, and Tony knew this was it. 

"Yeah. Well, I just wanted to let you know. I'll check in when I can." Steve said, and then hurried out of the lab. Tony felt the sting of betrayal settle deep inside him. He stared at the retreating figure in disbelief.

Steve. The man he thought of as one of his best friends...was going to keep this from him. He didn't know how long he sat there staring at the doors, but suddenly his wife was standing in his field of vision. 

"Tony?" she asked softly, concern lacing her voice. 

"He didn't tell me." he felt himself say. He heard Natasha let out a frustrated noise, but he was too focused on the uncomfortable feeling filling his gut. 

"He didn't tell me." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm what did you think?


	9. Avengers: Age of Ultron

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is the next movie! 
> 
> Now this is two years after Winter Soldier. And I know there's not a whole bunch of Peter in this one...but don't worry once Civil War happens we will be seeing a lot more of him.
> 
> Also shout out to tsp, for giving me the idea to recreate the bar scene with Tony and Natasha instead of Bruce and Natasha! 
> 
> Lastly, I made a bit of a change with JARVIS and Vision...and I'll explain more at the end. 
> 
> Trigger Warning: mentions anxiety, and a panic attack

"Hey, the lullaby worked better than ever." she says, walking over to the huddled figure on the ground. She knew how much Tony loved Bruce, and she wanted to make sure the other man was okay. 

"Just wasn't expecting the Code Green." the man replies in a hushed voice. 

"If you hadn't been there, there would've been double the casualties. My best friend would've been a treasured memory." she tries, giving him a smile while nodding over to where Clint was laying. Bruce just sends her a grimace. 

"You know, sometimes exactly what I want to hear isn't exactly what I want to hear." he says, a self-deprecating smile on his face. She looks at him for a moment, before sighing. 

"How long before you trust me?" she asks, meeting his downcast eyes. 

"It's not you I don't trust." he replies with a sly smile, she regards him for a moment before standing up. 

"Thor, report on the Hulk?" she says then, looking over at the giant blonde. 

"The gates of Hell are filled with the screams of his victims." the man replies, and Natasha sends him a glare, as the man behind her makes a wounded noise. 

"Uh, but, not the screams of the dead, of course. No no, uh...wounded screams, mainly whimpering, a great deal of complaining and tales of sprained deltoids and, and uh... and gout." the man tries to redeem himself, and Natasha just shakes her head in defeat. 

"Hey Banner, Dr. Cho's on her way in from Seoul, is it okay if she sets up in your lab?" her husband speaks up then, she furrows her eyebrows at his voice, which sounds a little too stiff for her liking. 

"Uh, yeah, she knows her way around." Bruce responds and Natasha sends him one more smile before walking over to her husband. 

"Tell her to prep everything, Barton's gonna need the full treatment." she hears him say to JARVIS. 

"Very good sir." 

"JARVIS, take the wheel." her husband says, before standing up. He looks like he's about to head over to where Steve and Thor were standing, but she intercepts quickly. 

"What's wrong?" she says, not bothering to beat around the bush. He furrows his eyebrows at her before sighing. 

"Nothing, just a long day." he says, and she can still hear the tightness in his voice, and she knows that something is up that he's not telling her. She narrows her eyes. 

"We are going to talk about this later." she said harshly, and by the look on his face she knows he's aware that she's upset with him. He nods quickly before heading over to the two men by the scepter. 

\---

"How did a nice girl like you wind up working in a dump like this?" he says, walking up to his wife who was mixing a drink behind the bar. She raises her eyebrow at him for a moment, before she smirks. 

"Fella done me wrong." she replies, and Tony stiffens a bit. He knew she was still mad at him for brushing her off in the quin-jet. He didn't really mean to, he had just not been ready to face what he had just seen. He was still pretty shaken up about it. Seeing her...Tony shakes the thought out of his head. 

"You got a lousy taste in men, kid." he responds, with a smirk of his own. She rolls her eyes, and leans forward. He drinks her in and lets it calm his nerves. He tries to convey how sorry he is through his eyes, and it seems to work because she gives him a soft smile. 

"He's not so bad. Well, he likes to push people away. Deep down he's all fluff. Fact is, he's not like anybody I've ever known. All my friends are fighters. And here comes this guy, so focused on the fight, he doesn't have room to let people in." Tony takes a deep breath, and studies his wife's eyes. They have a silent conversation for a bit, before he lets out a sigh of relief when he realizes she's no longer mad. 

"Sounds amazing." he says then, giving her a warm smile. 

"He's also a huge dork." his wife says then, taking him by surprise. He lets out a surprised chuckle. "Chicks dig that. So what do you think, should I fight this, or run with it?" she says then, her hand coming to gently squeeze his arm, the warm look in her eyes contradicting her teasing tone. He taps his finger on his chin for a moment, acting like he's thinking. 

"Run with it, right? Or, did he...was he...? What did he do that was so wrong to you?" he says then, testing the waters. She leans over and gives him a kiss, before starting to walk away. 

"Not a damn thing. But never say never." she pauses, turning to him, giving him a nod, before walking away. Tony stands there for a few more minutes, staring after her before there's a throat being cleared behind him. 

"What was that?" Steve asks, eyebrows raised. Tony turns around, trying not to flinch at Steve's sudden presence. 

"What was what?" he asks then, grabbing the drink Natasha had made him, so that he would have something to do with his hands. He could see the disapproving look in Steve's eyes but forced himself not to acknowledge it. Little did Steve know, he had stopped drinking when Peter was born. 

"You and Romanoff, just now? It looked like you were having two different conversations." Steve says then, and Tony lets out a small laugh. 

"No, she was just flirting." Tony says, not feeling comfortable being asked about his relationship. Steve shakes his head, still looking confused. 

"I've seen her flirt, up close. This ain't that. I hope everything is okay between you two?" Steve says, and Tony opens his mouth to snap at him to mind his own business, before something Steve said brings him up short. 

"Wait, what do you mean, 'up close'?" Tony asks, narrowing his eyes, watching as Steve's face turns red, and he quickly moves to walk away. "Wait right there Rogers! What do you mean up close?" he yells again, following after the super soldier.

\---

"All our work is gone. Ultron cleared out, used the internet as an escape hatch." Bruce says, and something in Tony's stomach tightens. He is watching Natasha out of the corner of his eye, feeling very grateful Peter was not here during that attack. 

"Ultron." Steve said, disdain clear in his voice. Tony feels his throat tighten, and he can feel the panic clawing it's way to the surface. He couldn't let it out, not in front of everyone, he swallows thickly and tunes back into what is going on, his fingers tapping out a rhythm on his thigh. 

"He's been in everything. Files, surveillance. Probably knows more about us than we know about each other." Natasha was saying, and he could see Rhodey shaking his head next to him. 

"He's in your files, he's in the internet. What if he decides to access something a little more exciting?" Rhodey says, and that's not helping the panic settling in his stomach. He can feel the looks Natasha is sending him, but he is too focused on keeping the panic attack at bay, his fingers moving more frantically on his leg. 

"Nuclear codes." Maria says gravely. Tony looks at her, swallowing down the bile in his throat. 

"Nuclear codes. Look, we need to make some calls, assuming we still can." Rhodey responds, and Tony is grateful he's there, so someone can get a plan going. 

"Nukes? He said he wanted us dead." his wife says, moving to stand beside Tony, taking his tapping hand in hers. He feels his breaths coming a little easier. 

"He didn't say dead. He said extinct." Steve bites, anger in his voice.

"He also said he killed somebody." Clint speaks up, looking concerned, sending looks over to him and Natasha. Tony feels his heart pang in his chest at the reminder. He can feel Natasha's eyes on him as he let go of her hand, picking up his phone. 

"But there wasn't anyone else in the building." Maria says in confusion, and Tony forces himself to speak up. 

"Yes there was." He says, flicking his phone to bring up JARVIS' interface, he has to swallow more bile at the sight of the torn up orange. 

"This is insane." Bruce breathes. 

"JARVIS was the first line of defense. He would've shut Ultron down, it makes sense." Steve says simply, and Tony's too focused on keeping his breathing under control to snap at him. 

"No, Ultron could've assimilated Jarvis. This isn't strategy, this is...rage." Bruce says, voice laced with fear and confusion. Tony can feel his breathing getting shaky before it's stolen from him by a large fist around his throat. He feels himself being lifted up in the air and it takes everything in him to avoid crying out in pain.

"Woah, woah, woah! It's going around." Clint says, hand reaching for his gun. He could see Natasha pull hers as well from beside him. He knew this was going to escalate quickly, if he didn't step in. 

"Come on. Use your words, buddy." Tony breathes, trying not to let anyone see how much pain he was in. He could see Natasha stiffen though, and knows he didn't fool her. 

"I have more than enough words to describe you, Stark." Thor says menacingly. 

"Thor, put my husband down." he hears Natasha say coldly, and feels relief flood him at being let go. Once he's set down Natasha rushes to his side, starting to inspect his neck. 

"Thor, the Legionnaire." Steve reminds, bringing everyone's attention back to him. Tony takes a few choked breaths, trying to calm himself again, hoping to stave off the panic. He focuses on his wife's hands brushing the bruises probably forming on his neck. 

"Trail went cold about a hundred miles out but it's headed north, and it has the scepter. Now we have to retrieve it, again." the god answers, anger clear in his voice. Natasha lets out a sigh, and stops inspecting his injury to turn to everyone. 

"The genie's out of that bottle. Clear and present is Ultron." she instructs, her voice leaving no room for argument. 

"I don't understand. You built this program. Why is it trying to kill us?" Dr. Cho speaks up, her voice trembling with fear. Tony feels his panic bubble over the surface, and soon he's laughing, and he can't stop. He can see Bruce shake his head, and Natasha turn quickly to watch him warily. 

"You think this is funny?" a booming voice demands, and he could see the anger on Thor's face, but Tony can only feel the panic. 

"No. It's probably not, right? Is this very terrible? Is it so...is it so...it is. It's so terrible." he says then, rambling. He just wants the panicked feeling to stop, before he has a panic attack right here. 

"This could've been avoided if you hadn't played with something you don't understand." Thor yells, and Tony takes a deep breath, ignoring his wife's questioning looks. He shoves the panic down, and lets his press persona take over, a dangerous look crossing his face. 

"No, I'm sorry. I'm sorry. It is funny. It's a hoot that you don't get why we need this." Tony snaps, Natasha raising her eyebrows, but otherwise staying silent. 

"Tony, maybe this might not be the time to..." Bruce tries to step in, and Tony lets out a humorless chuckle. 

"Really?! That's it? You just roll over, show your belly, every time somebody snarls." he snaps, and deep down he feels guilty for snapping at his closest friend, knowing that Bruce didn't deserve it. But he didn't know what else to do, and he was very close to losing his facade to panic. 

"Only when I've created a murder bot." Bruce spits, and Tony flinches internally at the tone. 

"We didn't. We weren't even close. Were we close to an interface?" Tony shoots back, bringing up what he had been wondering from the beginning. 

"Well, you did something right. And you did it right here. The Avengers were supposed to be different than SHIELD." Steve steps in, and Tony has to suppress the urge to throw up right there. He could just hear the disapproval and blame in his voice, and it was hard to hear, knowing what he knew. 

"Anybody remember when I carried a nuke through a wormhole?" Tony says, unsure why he's bringing it up, because the familiar panic that accompanies that thought was now joining the already present anxiety. 

"No, it's never come up." Rhodey says sarcastically, but Tony could hear the worry in his voice.

"Saved New York?" Tony kept going, feeling himself getting hysterical. 

"Never heard that." Rhodey says again, moving to stand a bit closer to Tony. He distantly feels Natasha's hand on his arm, but he ignores it. 

"Recall that? A hostile alien army came charging through a hole in space. We're standing three hundred feet below it. We're the Avengers. We can bust arms dealers all the live long day, but, that up there? That's...that's the end game. How were you guys planning on beating that?" he continues desperately, eyes finding Steve's, raising his eyebrows at the man in question. 

"Together." Steve says, and Tony wants to laugh. He wants to start shouting about what a hypocrite Steve was being, but he stops himself. 

"We'll lose." he says, feeling the fight leaving his body, and the panic slowly taking back over. Natasha seems to sense this, because she's suddenly stepping forward, wrapping her free arm around his waist. He focuses on her arm, and leans his weight into her, feeling her concern shifting to him. 

"Then we'll do that together, too." Steve says, and Tony feels the last of his resolve slip away, he turns away and hides his face in Natasha's neck, ignoring the rest of what Steve has to say. He could feel Natasha saying a few more things, before she was pulling his head out of her shoulder. 

"It's just us." she whispers, and that was all he needed before he feels his knees buckle underneath him. Natasha grips his arms and slows their descent to the ground, and soon he finds himself on the ground, half in his wife's lap. His chest tightens, and the panic attack finally makes itself known. 

"It's okay, baby. Breathe. Please, baby, breathe." he could hear his wife's voice, but it sounds like it's underwater. Which is the wrong train of thought to go down, because he feels his chest tighten even more at the thought of water. His breathing starts getting more erratic, and he could feel hands on his face trying to calm him down, to no avail. 

"Tony, come on. Shit." Tony feels arms wrap around him and begin rocking him back and forth, he focuses on the rhythm and lets his breathing sync to it, and soon he feels himself breathing easier, as he becomes more aware of his surroundings. 

"There you go. Easy, easy. Are you with me?" he hears Natasha ask, and he nods slowly, looking around to take in his surroundings, grounding himself. Once he's sure he could, he sits up, leaning his back against one of the tables, Natasha settling in next to him. 

"You're okay right?" he asks, voice hoarse, as he tilts his head to look at her. She turns to him with a furrow in her brows. 

"What?" she asks, confusion lacing her voice. 

"Ultron. Did he hurt you? Are you okay?" he asks again, voice a little more clear this time. Understanding fills her face and she nods. 

"No, he didn't. I'm okay. What about you? What was all that?" she asks gently, and Tony drops his head to her shoulder. 

"I didn't mean to Tash. I didn't. I just wanted to keep you safe. I promise. I didn't-" he rambles, his eyes heavy, before Natasha shushes him. She brings her hand up to rest in his hair. 

"Shhh. We will talk about it later. You need to get some rest, just go to sleep okay? Everything will be okay." she whispers, as she runs her fingers through his hair. He wants to protest, but his panic attack drained him of all energy. And that paired with Natasha's calming presence, he could feel his eyes fall close of their own accord, and soon everything was black. 

\---

"The news is loving you guys. Nobody else is. There's been no official call for Banner's arrest, but it's in the air." Maria says as he sits down in the quin-jet. Natasha's leaning against his leg, shaking like a leaf. He starts running his fingers through her hair, trying to help in some way. 

"Stark Relief Foundation?" he asks, eyes still on Natasha, worry filling his gut. 

"Already on the scene. How's the team?" Maria asks sympathetically. 

"Everyone's...we took a hit. We'll shake it off." he sighs, looking around quickly. Everyone was in their own world, and they looked worse for wear. The only one who seemed fine was Clint, who was piloting the quin-jet. He would say he was fine too, but he could feel the worry for Natasha balancing on the edge of panic. 

"Well for now I'd stay in stealth mode, and stay away from here." Maria says, pulling him out of his thoughts. He lets out a snort. 

"So, run and hide?" he asks incredulously, lowering his voice when he feels Natasha flinch against him. He shushes her quietly, before turning his attention back to Maria. 

"Until we can find Ultron, I don't have a lot else to offer." she says apologetically, and Tony lets out a sigh. 

"Neither do we." he says as a goodbye, and turns off the video chat. He stands up gently and helps lower Natasha down, covering her with a blanket. He waits next to her for a bit, until she falls asleep, before he heads over to where Clint was flying, jaw tight.

"Hey, you wanna switch out?" he asks in concern, resting his hand on the other man's shoulder. He could feel how stiff Clint was, and it was worrying him. 

"No, I'm good. If you wanna get some kip, now's a good time, cause we're still a few hours out." Clint replies tightly, and Tony narrows his eyes in suspicion. 

"A few hours from where?" Tony asks warily, already feeling like he knew what Clint was talking about. 

"A safe house." is Clint's reply, and Tony knows his suspicions are right. 

"You sure about this?" Tony asks quietly, and Clint turns to him quickly, sincerity in his gaze. 

"Yeah, I'm sure." he replies, and Tony nods, hoping Clint knew what he was doing. 

"Okay, why don't I keep you company?" Tony asks then, and Clint nods gratefully as he sits in the copilot chair. 

A few hours later, Tony is supporting Natasha's weight with Clint's help as they walked up to the familiar farmhouse. 

"What is this place?" Steve asks as they walk. 

"A safe house." Tony replies casually. 

"Let's hope." Clint responds from next to him, sending Tony a smirk. Tony just rolls his eyes as Clint opens the door and shifts all of Natasha's weight onto him. 

"Honey, I'm home." Clint calls as they all file in, and soon Laura, a very pregnant Laura, is rounding the corner in surprise. She sends Tony a look before raising her eyebrows at Clint. "Hi. Company. Sorry I didn't call ahead." Clint responds weakly, and Laura narrows her eyes a bit. 

"Hey." she replies, looking around at the group, before greeting Clint with a kiss. Tony sends her an awkward wave. 

"Is this an agent of some kind?" he hears Thor ask Steve quietly. He watches in amusement as Steve just shrugs in confusion.

"Gentleman, this is Laura." Clint then introduces lamely, and Tony snorts as Clint sends him a glare. 

"I know all your names." Laura then says with a stiff smile. Then they hear footsteps running down the hall, and Tony feels a smile fill his face, and Natasha stands a little straighter in his arms. 

"Ooh, incoming." Clint says happily as Cooper and Lila come racing in, tackling him in a hug. 

"Dad!" Lila squeals and Clint swings her up into his arms, and kisses Cooper on the head. 

"Hey, buddy! How you guys doing? Ooh..." Clint is saying, and Tony has to stifle his amusement at the look on the others' faces. 

"And these are...smaller agents?" Thor questions again, and Tony laughs before turning his attention back to the family reunion. 

"Did you bring Auntie Nat and Uncle Tony?" Lila then asks, and Natasha moves out of his arms and into sight of the kids, with a shaky smile on her face. 

"Why don't you hug 'em and find out?" his wife says, getting the attention of the kids. Lila rushes over to her, and Natasha scoops her into her arms with a smile. Cooper runs over to Tony and gives him a hug, ruffling his hair. 

"Where's Pete?" Tony asks Cooper then, after Lila had transferred herself from Natasha's arms to his and has busied herself with pulling on his beard. 

"He's in my room. He thought it was just Dad. I'll go get him! Come on, Lila." Cooper says then, pulling his sister's arm. Tony lets her down gently, before they rush out of the room. Steve is looking between everyone in confusion. 

"Sorry for barging in on you." he starts, causing everyone's attention to turn to him. 

"Yeah, we would have called ahead, but we didn't know we were coming until just now. Thanks for watching Pete." Tony said then, walking over and giving Laura a kiss on the cheek, Natasha following and pulling Laura into a hug. 

"Yeah, well Fury helped me set this up when I joined. He kept it off SHIELD's files, I'd like to keep it that way, only Tony and Nat know. I figure it's a good place to lay low." Clint explains to the others, and Tony turns away to watch Natasha and Laura.

"Honey. Ah, I missed you." Laura is saying, squeezing his wife's hands. Natasha gives her a weak smile, and Tony can tell that Laura is worried, just like he is. But Natasha is the queen of deflection, because she turns their attention to the baby bump. 

"How's little Natasha, huh?" she asks, placing her hands on Laura's stomach. Laura gives her a guilty smile. 

"She's…Nathaniel." Laura says then, and Natasha frowns, and bends until her face is in front of her stomach.

"Traitor." Natasha whispers. And Tony lets out a betrayed noise. 

"Wait why Nathaniel? Why not Tony?" he says then, earning a laugh out of Laura and a glare from his wife. He puts his hands up in his defense before he feels small arms wrap around him from behind. 

"Dad!" Tony smiles, before turning around and returning his son's hug. 

"Hey bug! Have you been good for Laura?" he asks, pulling away and brushing his sons bangs back from his face. Peter scrunches his face in embarrassment, and pushes Tony's hands away. 

"Of course, Dad. Hey Mama." he says, moving away from Tony with a weak glare and walking over to his mother. He rolls his eyes at the teenage attitude as Natasha pulls him into a tight hug and they share some quiet words. He is broken from his thoughts as the door slams shut. He watches in concern as Thor storms out, with Steve hot on his heels, before he sees Thor disappear in a flash of light. He exchanges a look with Clint before he has Peter show them to where he's been staying.

\---

"What happened? What did she show you?" Tony asks gently, a couple hours later as they were sitting in the guest room, freshly showered. 

"Just...it was nothing." Natasha says quietly, running a brush through her hair. Tony sighs and stands up, placing himself behind her with his hands resting gently on her hips. He looks at her in the mirror. 

"Tash." he urges gently, and her shoulders drop in defeat. 

"The Red Room. And it just reminded me that I was lying to myself." she replies, voice hard. Tony brushes a kiss onto her cheek. 

"Lying about what?" he presses gently, and he can feel the shakiness of the breath she lets out, turning around in his arms. 

"That I was an Avenger. That I was anything more than the assassin they made me." she whispers, her eyes focused on her hands that were drawing absent patterns into the fabric of his shirt. 

"Tash. How could you even say something like that? You know it's not true. If you were still what they made you, you wouldn't be married to me. You wouldn't be Pete's Mom. Look me in the eyes and tell me that I'm wrong." Tony said, gently pulling her chin up to meet his eyes. She looks at him for a moment, before nodding. 

"I know. I'm sorry. I know." she says then, and he pulls her closer in his arms, her head tucked under his chin. 

"Good." he says, and they stay like that for a while, slightly swaying back and forth before Natasha pulls away slightly to look at him. 

"What did she show you?" she asks, and Tony stiffens slightly. 

"What do you mean? I was with the Hulk." Tony says lamely, trying to deflect. She raises her eyebrow at him, face unamused. He sighs, leading them back to sit on the bed, Natasha settling herself on his lap. 

"Everyone was dead. And it was my fault. I didn't do enough." he finally says, the fear from when he first saw it coming back. Natasha hums thoughtfully, her hands playing with the small hairs at the base of his neck.

"And that's why you were experimenting with Ultron." she says, the words coming out as a statement, rather than a question. He nods, burying his face in her neck. 

"I get it. And it didn't go like we wanted it to. So now we fix it." she says then, and he feels grateful that she doesn't blame him for what happened. He nods, smiling up at her before placing a gentle kiss on her lips. They kiss slowly for a few minutes, before she pulls away and nods towards the window. 

"Why don't you go help Cap chop some wood?" she says with a smirk. He sends her a fake glare before rolling his eyes and heading outside. 

\---

"Thor didn't say where he was going for answers?" Tony asks later, as he and Steve are chopping wood. He has to avoid watching Steve so he doesn't get frustrated at how easy this was for him. 

"Sometimes my teammates don't tell me things. I was kind of hoping Thor would be the exception." Steve says, blame in his voice. Tony knew it was directed at him, for not saying anything about Ultron. Tony almost scoffs. He wants so badly to call Steve out, about how he wasn't telling Tony something very important either, call him a hypocrite. He reigned it in though, knowing they had more important things to worry about. 

"Yeah, give him time. We don't know what the Maximoff kid showed him." he says instead, giving Thor the benefit of doubt. 

"'Earth's Mightiest Heroes.' Pulled us apart like cotton candy." Steve says then, bitterly. Tony raises his eyebrow at him, before picking up a new piece of wood. 

"Seems like you walked away all right." he says, swinging the ax around and effectively chopping the wood piece in half. It was satisfying. He heard Steve sigh. 

"Is that a problem?" he asks, defensively, shoulders squared in a challenge. 

"I don't trust a guy without a dark side. Call me old fashioned." Tony says, rising to the bait a bit. He takes a deep breath to calm himself as Steve lets out a sharp laugh. 

"Well let's just say you haven't seen it yet." he spits, and Tony wants to say he has, but doesn't.

"You know Ultron is trying to tear us apart, right?" he says, trying to get Steve to calm down a bit, but that only seems to rile him up more. 

"Well I guess you'd know. Whether you tell us is a bit of a question." Tony stops and looks at him incredulously. 

"Banner and I were doing research." he snaps.

"That would affect the team." Steve spits back, and Tony wants to scream. 

"That would end the team. Isn't that the mission? Isn't that the "why" we fight, so we can end the fight, so we get to go home?" Tony says sharply, hands gesturing to the farm around them. He had a family he was trying to protect, and he didn't understand why Steve didn't get that. He watches as Steve pulls apart a log with his bare hands before turning to look at Tony angrily. 

"Every time someone tries to win a war before it starts, innocent people die. Every time." Steve says coldly, and Tony is about to spit back when he hears a soft voice behind him.

"I'm sorry. Tony, uh, Clint said you wouldn't mind, but, our tractor, it doesn't seem to want to start at all. I thought maybe you might..." she says, eyes worriedly flicking between him and Steve. Tony lets out a sigh, and gives Laura a reassuring smile, watching as she gives him one back. 

"Yeah, I'll give her a kick." he says, reaching an arm out to assist Laura walking back. Before they get too far he turns around and points and accusing finger in Steve's direction. "Don't take from my pile." he says childishly, earning a snort from Laura, before he continues to walk away. They walk silently toward the barn for a few minutes before she speaks up. 

"You doing okay? Nat told me he still hasn't told you." Laura asks quietly as they come to a stop in front of the barn. Tony shakes his head tiredly. 

"At this point, I don't think he ever will." he says, before turning and heading into the barn. 

\---

"What the hell happened?" Tony screams the second Bruce and Clint walk in. "Where is she?" he shouts again when no one answers. He glares at Clint, who looks just as upset as he feels. 

"He has her. We'll find her." Clint spits out. Tony clenches his fists for a minute before facing Clint again. 

"Sorry. Any chance she might leave you a message, outside the internet, old school spy stuff?" he asks, and Clint looks up suddenly. 

"There's some nets I can cast. Yeah, alright. I'll find her." he says mostly to himself, before rushing off. Tony forces himself to take a deep breath, before turning to Bruce. 

"I can work on tissue degeneration, if you can fry whatever operational system Cho implanted." the man says, and Tony hesitates. 

"Yeah, about that." he starts, and Bruce is already shaking his head.

"No." he says immediately.

"You have to trust me." 

"Kinda don't." Bruce says, and Tony has to swallow down the hurt for a moment, before continuing. 

"Our ally? The guy protecting the military's nuclear codes? I found him." Tony says, flicking his tablet, the familiar orange interface appearing in the room. 

"Hello, Dr. Banner." JARVIS greets, and Bruce looks at him in surprise. 

"Ultron didn't go after JARVIS cause he was angry. He attacked him because he was scared of what he can do. So JARVIS went underground. Okay? Scattered, dumped his memory. But not his protocols. He didn't even know he was in there, until I pieced him together." Tony says, pride filling him as he thought of his creation. 

"So, you want me to help you put JARVIS into this thing?" Bruce asks warily. Tony shakes his head. 

"No, of course not! I want to help you put another AI in this thing. I have another AI, just like JARVIS...if we can..." he cuts off as Bruce starts shaking his head, he lets out a sigh. "We're out of my field here. You know bio-organics better than anyone." Tony pleads.

"And you just assume that your AI's operational matrix can beat Ultron's?" Bruce asks skeptically. 

"JARVIS has been beating him from inside without knowing it. This AI is an exact copy of JARVIS' interface. This is the opportunity, we can create Ultron's perfect self, without the homicidal glitches he thinks are his winning personality. We have to." he says, desperate for Bruce to believe him. 

"I believe it's worth a go." JARVIS says then, and Tony gestures at him in gratitude, silently begging Bruce.

"No, I'm in a loop! I'm caught in a time loop, this is exactly where it all went wrong." Bruce says then, hysterical. But Tony knows he's succeeded in getting Bruce on his side. 

"I know, I know. I know what everyone's going to say, but they're already saying it. We're mad scientists. We're monsters, buddy. You gotta own it. Make a stand. It's not a loop. It's the end of the line." he says, and slowly Bruce nods, and they get to work. 

\---

Natasha can hear some kind of commotion happening outside her cell, and she can only hope that Clint found her, and that Tony was on his way. 

"Natasha! Natasha!" she hears, but it sounds nothing like Tony. It sounds like Bruce. 

"Bruce?" she asks in confusion, looking around to see if Tony is anywhere to be seen. 

"You alright?" he asks in response, walking closer to her cell. She nods. 

"Yeah." she says and he nods. 

"The team's in the city, it's about to light up." he says, and she feels fear settle in her gut for Tony, but ignores it. 

"I don't suppose you found a key lying around somewhere?" she asks, and he nods sheepishly. 

"Yeah, I did." he says, bringing out a gun. She nods in a approval and backs up as he blasts the lock. 

"So what's our play?" she asks then, and he looks at her warily. 

"I'm here to get you to safety." Bruce answers, and Natasha knows that Tony sent him. 

"Job's not finished." she says, and he shakes his head. 

"We could help with the evacuation, but I can't be in a fight near civilians. And Tony wants you safe. Our fight is over." Bruce says, trying to convince her. She shakes her head. 

"Tony knows better than to try and bench me. Jobs not finished Banner, let's go." she says, and Bruce nods reluctantly, like this is what he expected the whole time, and hands her a comm. 

"Tony, you know I don't like to be told what to do." she says as soon as it connects, Bruce laughing quietly behind her. She can hear her husband let out a small curse, before sighing.

"It was worth a shot. Why do you think he also had a comm?" Tony responds, and she rolls her eyes and heads to the fight. 

\---

"We're dealing with something new." Tony says, walking slowly next to Thor and Steve. He felt a little sore, but altogether relieved it was over and he could go home. 

"Well, the Vision's artificial intelligence." Steve replies, bringing him back into the conversation. 

"A machine." he agrees. 

"So it doesn't count." Steve says like it's obvious. 

"No. It's not like a person lifting the hammer." Tony adds, Thor chuckling between them. 

"Right. Different rules for us." Steve says, a smile in his voice. Tony feels a smirk line his face. 

"Nice guy, but artificial." 

"Thank you." Steve laughs. 

"If he can wield the hammer, he can keep the Mind Stone. It's safe with the Vision and these days, safe is in short supply." Thor says then, bringing a serious note to their conversation. Tony shakes his head. 

"But if you put the hammer in an elevator..." Steve says, and Tony lets out a laugh. 

"It would still go up." Tony finishes, earning a smug smile from Steve. 

"Elevator's not worthy." the man responds with a shake of his head, as they finally reach the outside lawn. 

"I'm going to miss these little talks of ours." Thor says, voice booming as always. 

"Well, not if you don't leave." Tony says reasonably. Thor shakes his head. 

"I have no choice. The Mind Stone is the fourth of the Infinity Stones to show up in the last few years. That's not a coincidence. Someone has been playing an intricate game and has made pawns of us. But once all these pieces are in position..." Thor says gravely, and Tony doesn't like how serious this conversation was getting. 

"Triple Yahtzee?" he jokes, earning a fond eye roll from the super soldier, while the god just shook his head. 

"You think you can find out what's coming?" Steve asks, ignoring Tony. 

"I do. Besides this one, there's nothing that can't be explained." Thor says, patting Tony roughly on the chest. He makes a sound of outrage, but they both ignore him. Soon there's a flash of light, and Thor is gone, leaving an ugly mark in the grass where he had stood.

"That man has no regard for lawn maintenance. I'm gonna miss him though. And you're gonna miss me. There's gonna be a lot of manful tears." Tony says, turning around, pressing the button on his phone, watching as his car pulled up in front of him. Steve shakes his head in amusement. 

"I will miss you, Tony." he says, and Tony thinks that he sounds sincere, but he can never be too sure anymore. 

"Yeah? Well, it's time for me to tap out. Maybe I should take a page out of Clint's book and build Tasha and Pete a farm, hope nobody blows it up." Tony says then, placing his hand in his pockets. 

"The simple life." Steve replies with a nod, a bit of a wistful tone in his voice. Tony smiles at him. 

"You'll get there one day." he reassures him, but Steve is already shaking his head. He raises his eyebrows in curiosity. 

"I don't know, family, stability. The guy who wanted all that went in the ice seventy-five years ago. I think someone else came out." Steve says, voice a bit sad. Tony turns and opens his door. 

"You alright?" he asks as he gets in his car, and Steve nods. 

"I'm home." Steve says then, looking around. Tony nods, and gives him a salute, before speeding away. He was glad this was all over and he could head home.

IRONMAN WILL RETURN

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay...what did you think? Let me know!
> 
> And I never liked how they got rid of JARVIS, and I truly believe Tony is smart enough to have another AI that he could put into Vision...so Vision is the exact same, just doesn't sound like JARVIS, and JARVIS is still around. 
> 
> I hope you don't mind. 
> 
> Also post credit scene is coming. I still have to edit it a bit, but I wanted to get this chapter up! 
> 
> Please leave a comment about what you thought! They keep me going!


	10. Post Credit Scene

Natasha walked into the lab after a long day of training, and smiled at the sight in front of her. Tony was flinging holograms around, while yelling at JARVIS about something, while Peter was playing fetch with DUM-E. 

"JARVIS quit shutting down my work! I swear I'm going to donate you to a fast food restaurant. How do you feel about that? Pete, I swear if you send my robot into another table, I'm going to lose it." Tony says, waving a warning finger in their sons direction. As he turned he spotted Natasha at the door. 

"Tash!" Natasha feels a smile stretch across her face at the way her husband's face lit up as he saw her. She walks further into the room and stops in front of him. 

"When was the last time you guys came up for air?" she asked raising her eyebrow, while eyeing the many granola bar wrappers littering the desk. She turned back to Tony, who was giving her a guilty smile. 

"Sir and young sir have been in here the past 10 hours, and have ignored all of my reminders to eat." JARVIS cut in before Tony could say anything. She watched in amusement as he sent a glare to the nearest camera. 

"He's lying. He's just mad 'cause I told him he'd make a great drive thru worker." Tony explained, waving his hand in the camera's direction. 

"Oh certainly, sir." JARVIS replied, sarcasm laced in the robotic voice. Natasha smirked as her husband let out a tired sigh. She shook her head and turned to their son, who was still invested in his game of fetch. 

"Peter. Go upstairs and get ready for bed. I'll be up to make you some dinner in a bit." Natasha said, voice firm. Peter's head shot up and he nodded quickly, patting DUM-E's claw apologetically when the bot let out a series of sad beeps. He started heading out the door before he froze and turned around, heading for his backpack.

"I forgot. Mama, can you sign this? Our class is going to Oscorp for a field trip, and I knew Dad wouldn't sign it because of that." Peter said, bringing her a paper while sending a playful glare towards Tony. 

"Your damn right I wouldn't sign it. Why do you need to go and see mediocre science when you live in the biggest tech company's building? I can just take you downstairs and it would be better." Tony said, a look of disgust on his face as he watched Natasha sign the form. Peter just rolled his eyes and looked at Natasha. 

"Tony. Peter wants to be with his friends. Besides, it's not like anything exciting will happen, it's only Oscorp." she replied with a smirk, sending her son a wink as Tony started ranting about the other company. Peter just let out a giggle, before going upstairs. 

"Betrayed in my own home." Tony said, once Peter left. She shook her head.

"You're too dramatic." she shot back, flicking his nose. He screwed up his face, before sighing.

"How was training?" he asked, standing up and taking her hand, leading them to the elevator. 

"It was...it's hard being around Wanda after what happened. But Steve is adamant about giving her a second chance. Rhodey is doing great." she said, as they stepped into the elevator. Tony hummed in thought for a moment, before the doors closed. 

"Of course platypus is doing great. It's my suit." he finally responded after a few moments of silence. Natasha just shook her head. 

"You need to take that ego down mister." she said, walking away from his gaping look as soon as the doors opened.

PETER STARK WILL RETURN 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave a comment about what you think! The comments are the only reason I keep writing, it lets me know if you guys are even enjoying this or not! 
> 
> Thanks for reading and for all of you who comment on every chapter!


	11. Captain America: Civil War

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm the worst, I'm the worst, I'm the worst...(sung in the tune of the map song from Dora for any of you who were wondering)
> 
> Sorry this took so long! I didn't know this semester was gonna kick my butt....but I procrastinated studying for my midterms to write this soooo you're welcome!!
> 
> shoutout to EmperorSeramir, for their suggestion on what to write for the airport scene...their idea really helped it come together. 
> 
> I hope you like it! Please let me know what you think in the comments!
> 
> also this is about 2 years after AoU.
> 
> TW: panic attacks

"Who's going to avenge my son, Stark? He's dead . . . and I blame you." Tony blinked a few times, as the woman disappeared from his view. His chest tightened with panic, and he hit the elevator button several times a little too harshly. He kept his head down as he headed to the car. Happy sends him a concerned look, but he waves it off, fishing his phone out of his pocket. 

"Hey Dad, what's up?" he felt something in his chest loosen at the voice on the other end. 

"How are you feeling squirt?" he asked, trying to keep his voice light. There was a beat of silence on the other end, and he knew Peter was trying to listen to his breathing, and in light of recent events, he could probably hear it. 

"What happened?" Peter finally asked, his voice calm, but concerned. Tony felt a little guilty at the fact that his 14 year old son was trying to take care of him instead of the other way around. 

"Nothing, just something someone said to me. It's fine. Stop deflecting. How are the senses today?" he asked quickly, trying to turn the attention away from him. Peter let out an annoyed huff, but luckily decided to let it drop. 

"They were a little bit much today, but those glasses and head phones we built are helping a lot." Peter said, and Tony felt relieved. The past couple months had been a whirlwind since Peter returned from his field trip to Oscorp. He had come home and gotten really sick, so sick that Tony thought he was going to lose him. But then the sickness left as quick as it came, and now they were dealing with the aftermath of learning that their kid now had super powers. 

He was about to respond, when he heard Peter gasp. 

"What is it bud?" Tony asked, sitting up and motioning for Happy to step on the gas. He felt the car accelerate as Peter responded. 

"That mission, that Mama was on...in Lagos? There was just an explosion, they are saying the Avengers did it." Peter replied. Tony felt his breath catch in his throat. 

"Shit. Okay, bud go down to the lab, you know where to go, and wait for me there. I'm going to try and get a hold of Mom." Tony said, looking out the window to see how close he was to the tower. 

"Why do I have to go down there?" Peter asked, but Tony knew he was already headed that way. 

"Because. If the Avengers did this, we might get some government officials knocking at the door, and they don't need to find you." Tony said quickly. Peter huffed but agreed, before hanging up. He quickly dialed his wife's number, hoping she would pick up. 

"Everyone's fine." Natasha's voice filtered through the phone. Tony let out a slight sigh of relief. 

"What happened?" he asked simply, needing to know all the facts. 

"I'm not sure, honestly. Cap hasn't said much. We are headed back now, we should get there in about an hour or so. How did your speech go?" Natasha asked then, and he knew it was bad if she was trying to deflect. 

"Natasha." he heard her let out a sigh, as well as a curse in Russian. 

"I know." she said. Tony ripped open the car door as soon as Happy came to a stop in the garage. 

"What do you need Boss?" he asked. Tony stopped at the elevator and turned. 

"Pete's in the safe room. Will you go make sure he stays there and stays safe?" Tony asked, earning a curt nod from his driver and he turned back to the elevator.

"This is all they need to pin us down, Tash." Tony said, turning his attention back to his wife. 

"I know." she said again, her voice tired. 

"I'm headed to the office. I'll hold them off as long as I can." he said, already feeling his headache from the BARF presentation making itself known. 

"We'll get there as soon as we can." she replied, before hanging up. 

"Sir, Secretary Ross is on the line for you." JARVIS said as soon as he crossed the threshold. 

"Put him on, J." he said, fixing his tie. 

  
\---

"Secretary Ross has a Congressional Medal of Honor, which is one more than you have." Rhodey said, and Tony wanted to snort. Rhodey didn't like Ross just like he didn't, but he was grasping at straws to convince the others. Tony just laid there, arm over his eyes to block out the light. 

"So let's say we agree to this thing. How long is it gonna be before they lo-jack us like a bunch of common criminals?" Sam retorts, his voice hard like he was ready for a fight. 

"A 117 countries want to sign this. 117, Sam, and you're just like, 'No, that's cool. We got it.'" Rhodey retorts, incredulously. 

"How long are you going to play both sides?" Sam asks then, his voice accusing. 

"I have an equation." Vision then speaks up, voice calm and even like always. 

"Oh, this will clear it up." Sam replies sarcastically. 

"In the eight years since Mr. Stark announced himself as Iron Man, the number of known enhanced persons has grown exponentially. And during the same period, the number of potentially world-ending events has risen at a commensurate rate." Vision continues anyway, voice flat. 

"Are you saying it's our fault?" Steve jumps in, and Tony can hear the defense in his voice. 

"I'm saying there may be a causality. Our very strength invites challenge. Challenge incites conflict. And conflict...breeds catastrophe. Oversight...oversight is not an idea that can be dismissed out of hand." Vision responds calmly. Tony had to hand it to the guy. Android or not it took serious skill to not take Cap's attitude to heart.

"Boom." Rhodey cheers, a bit smug. He snorts, and he can feel everyone's gaze jump to him. Natasha brushes her hand through his hair, gently, and he moves his hand a bit to look up at her. 

"You are being uncharacteristically non-hyper-verbal." his wife says gently, a smirk on her face at the attempted joke. Tony lets his lips turn up a bit in a grateful smile, before it's wiped off his face when Steve speaks up, voice hard in challenge. 

"It's because he's already made up his mind." He feels Natasha squeeze his arm in sympathy, before he responds, his arm returning over his eyes. 

"Boy, you know me so well." he replies flatly, he steels himself and stands up, his eyes protesting the light. He winces a bit, rubbing the back of his head, before heading to the small kitchen attached to the room. 

"Actually, I'm nursing an electromagnetic headache." he continues, forcing his voice to come out conversationally. He grabs the pain reliever and a mug from the cupboard before walking to the sink. 

"That's what's going on, Cap. It's just pain. It's discomfort. Who's putting coffee grounds in the disposal? Am I running a bed and breakfast for a biker gang?" he feels himself snap for a second, before he takes a breath to compose himself. He fills the mug with water, while fiddling with the pills in his palm. He sets his phone down on the counter in front of him, tapping it a few times. The picture that's been haunting him pulls up in a hologram. He points at it, smiling bitterly. 

"Oh, that's Charles Spencer, by the way. He's a great kid. Computer engineering degree, 3.6 GPA. Had a floor level gig at Intel planned for the fall. But first, he wanted to put a few miles on his soul, before he parked it behind a desk. See the world. Maybe be of service. Charlie didn't want to go to Vegas or Fort Lauderdale, which is what I would do. He didn't go to Paris or Amsterdam, which sounds fun. He decided to spend his summer building sustainable housing for the poor. Guess where, Sokovia." Tony spits, bitterly. He doesn't look over at the group, but he can feel Natasha's eyes burning a hole in the side of his head. He quickly swallows the pills before continuing.

"He wanted to make a difference, I suppose. I mean, we won't know because we dropped a building on him while we were kicking ass." he says then, voice low. He takes one last sip of water, before turning to the others. Natasha was watching him closely, concern in her eyes. The others were avoiding his gaze. 

"There's no decision-making process here. We need to be put in check! Whatever form that takes, I'm game. If we can't accept limitations, if we're boundary-less, we're no better than the bad guys." Tony finally says after a moment of silence. His voice comes out desperate, which is fitting. He needs them to agree. He needs them to sign. 

"Tony, someone dies on your watch, you don't give up." Steve finally responds, his hands up. Tony feels anger bubble up in him, but tries to keep it down.

"Who said we're giving up?" he asks, raising his eyebrows at the man. 

"We are if we're not taking responsibility for our actions. This document just shifts the blame." Steve responds firmly, gesturing to the Accords, sitting on the table, unread. Tony noticed no one had even opened it. They were arguing over something half of them haven't even read. 

"I'm sorry. Steve. That--that is dangerously arrogant. This is the United Nations we're talking about. It's not the World Security Council, it's not SHIELD, it's not HYDRA." Tony sighs in relief when Rhodey jumps in on his behalf. He sends a grateful look over to his best friend. Rhodey nods imperceptibly before they both turn their attention back to Steve. 

"No, but it's run by people with agendas, and agendas change." Steve says stubbornly. Tony rolls his eyes. 

"That's good. That's why I'm here. When I realized what my weapons were capable of in the wrong hands, I shut it down and stop manufacturing." he says, swinging his arm to make his point. Steve lets out a sigh, looking very put out by his words. 

"Tony, you chose to do that. If we sign this, we surrender our right to choose. What if this panel sends us somewhere we don't think we should go? What if there is somewhere we need to go, and they don't let us? We may not be perfect, but the safest hands are still our own." Steve says, crossing his arms.

"If we don't do this now, it's gonna be done to us later. That's the fact. That won't be pretty." Tony says back, hoping Steve would just listen to reason. 

"You're saying they'll come for me." Wanda finally speaks up, voice quiet. 

"We would protect you." Vision promises. 

"Tony's right." Natasha says, finally speaking up. Tony turns to her, a bit surprised. She hadn't been a big fan of what the government had been planning when he told her about it a few months ago. 

"If we have one hand on the wheel, we can still steer. If we take it off-" Natasha starts, before getting interrupted. 

"Aren't you the same woman who told the government to kiss her ass a few years ago?" Sam interrupts, voice shocked. 

"I'm just...I'm reading the terrain. We have made...some very public mistakes. We need to win their trust back." Natasha replies, calmly.

"Focus up. I'm sorry, did I just mishear you or did you agree with me?" Tony says then, trying to use humor to bring the mood back to something he could handle. Natasha looks at him exasperated, knowing what he was doing. 

"Oh, I want to take it back now." she says, flicking him on the nose. He sends her a smile and wink, which she purposely ignores.

"No, no, no. You can't retract it. Thank you. Unprecedented. Okay, case closed--I win." Tony responds, hoping he had successfully lightened the mood. He watches as Steve looks down at his phone, a dark look crossing his face as he reads it. Tony is about to ask what was wrong when the super solider stands up suddenly. 

"I have to go." he says quietly, before leaving the room. Tony looks around the room in confusion before his phone starts vibrating on the counter. He looks at it, and his heart drops, realizing what the news Steve just got must have been.

"Sharon." he answers, earning a curious look from everyone. 

"She's gone, Tony." Sharon's voice was shaky and thick from crying. He felt his knees give out, and he dropped to the couch next to Natasha. 

"When? How are you?" he asks then, voice no more than a whisper. 

"Last night. I'm...I'm okay. Mom's not doing too good. Funeral is going to be in a couple days. You should come. Bring Nat and Peter." Sharon said then, and Tony nodded, swallowing the lump in his throat. 

"We'll be there. Let me know if the family needs anything okay?" he responds, and he hears his cousin let out a shaky laugh. 

"I will. Thanks T, love you" he lets out a shaky laugh of his own. 

"Love you too, S. See you soon." He hangs up and rubs his hands down his face. When he looks up he realizes that everyone but Rhodey and Natasha had vacated the room while he was on the phone. 

"Peggy's gone." he says, his voice breaking and the tears finally making themselves known. He could feel Natasha and Rhodey sit down next to him, both trying to comfort him in their own ways. 

"We need to go to London." he says, after a few minutes. Natasha nods. 

"I'll go get Peter and get ready." she says, pressing a gentle kiss to the top of his head, before leaving. Rhodey gives his shoulder a squeeze before standing up himself. 

"I'll hold down the fort." he said. Tony gave him a grateful nod, before standing up and heading up to the penthouse. 

\---

"When I came out of the ice, I thought everyone I had known was gone. Then I found out that she was alive. I was just lucky to have her." Steve said as soon as she walked up beside him. He didn't even spare her a curious glance. 

"She had you back, too." she replied softly, hoping her words were of some comfort. 

"Who signed?" he asked then, changing the subject. 

"Tony. Rhodey. Vision. Me." she listed off, watching his reaction closely. 

"Clint?" he asks, turning to look at her. She notices the red ring around his eyes. 

"Says he's retired." she responds with a slight smile. Steve nods a bit, staring at the ground. 

"Wanda?" he finally asks, and she turns to him. 

"TBD. I'm off to Vienna for the signing of the Accords. There's plenty of room on the jet." she says, hoping she could finally get through to him. She watches as he shakes his head a bit, and she knows he's made up his mind. 

"Just because it's the path of least resistance doesn't mean it's the wrong path. Staying together is more important than how we stay together." she tries softly. 

"What are we giving up to do it?" he says after a few moments. She sighs, but nods, not surprised by his response. 

"I'm sorry, Nat. I can't sign it." he says, looking up at her again with an apologetic smile. 

"I know." she said, a sad smile on her own face. 

"Then what are you doing here?" he asks then, as if he was remembering where they were standing. 

"I was here with Tony and Peter. Peggy was Tony's godmother, I met her a couple times, Peter did too." she said softly, watching the surprise cross Steve's face. 

"Why didn't he tell me? Where is he?" Steve asked, looking around trying to spot them. 

"He didn't want to undermine your grief by playing 'who knew her best'. They headed back to New York." she said, and he looked at her with a pained look. 

"I haven't told him. And now with all of this...Peggy wouldn't be very happy with me, I don't think. But I have to do what I think is right." Steve said, guilt pooling in his eyes. Natasha just shrugs her shoulders in response, a little anger bubbling up at his mention of having not told Tony the truth. 

"Everyone makes mistakes. Even Captain America." she says, turning to walk away before he could respond.

\---

"Yeah?" she answers the call from Steve as she sits on the bench, watching all the panic happen around her. 

"You alright?" he asks, his voice casual. 

"Ah, yeah, thanks. I got lucky." she furrows her brows when she hears the same sirens around her from over the speaker. "I know how much Barnes means to you. I really do. Stay home. You'll only make this worse. For all of us. Please." she says then, looking around to see if she could spot him. 

"Are you saying you'll arrest me?" she sighs at the challenge in his voice. She was tired of the fighting already. 

"No. Someone will. If you interfere. That's how it works now." she says simply, as if she were talking to a child. 

"If he's this far gone, Nat, I should be the one to bring him in." Steve says instead. She blinks. 

"Why?" she continues to look around, trying to spot him in the crowd. 

"Because I'm the one least likely to die trying." he says, before hanging up without waiting for her response. She shakes her head. 

"Shit." she whispers as she dials a new number. 

"You okay?" Tony asks as he answers. She had already called him after the explosion, but she could still hear the worry in his voice. 

"I already told you I was. Things are about to get really messy." she says, hearing him curse on the other line. 

"Steve's going after him isn't he?" he asks then, voice tired. 

"Yep. And that's only going to end with more damage and more problems. Ross isn't going to like it." she says, standing up and heading to the car she knew Tony had sent for her via JARVIS. 

"Nope. He's going to pit us against each other. And Steve isn't going to come without a fight. He's going to try and collect people on his side." Tony says then, and she could picture him flinging around holograms as he scrambled for a plan. 

"If it gets to that point, we need to call Clint. Make sure he stays out of it. Laura doesn't need her husband getting arrested. Maybe we should send Peter to them." she says then. 

"Clint will hopefully have enough sense to lay low. Peter's safer here for now. If it gets worse...you know he'll want to help." Tony says with a helpless laugh. 

"I don't know if I'm ready for that." she responds, just as helplessly. 

"I don't think we are going to get a choice. The jet's ready for you. Hurry back. I'm going to go see what I can do with Ross." Tony says then, before hanging up. 

\---

"For the record, this is what making things worse looks like." he could hear his wife say, as she walked next to Steve and Sam after they got arrested. 

"He's alive." Steve responded, and Tony turned his attention back to the nagging on the other end of the phone call he was on. 

"No. Romania was not Accords-sanctioned. And, Colonel Rhodes is supervising cleanup." Tony said. Giving a small smile to Natasha as she came closer. 

"Try not to break anything while we fix this." she said to Steve and Sam, and Tony had to hold in a snort. He gave her a brief high five as she came to stand next to him. 

"Consequences? You bet there'll be consequences. Obviously you can quote me on that 'cause I just said it. Anything else? Thank you, sir." he said, rolling his eyes as he finally got to hang up. 

"'Consequences'?" Steve asks as soon as he's off the phone. Tony sends them a smirk.

"Secretary Ross wants you both prosecuted. Had to give him something." Tony said with a shrug. He had told Steve what was going to happen, so he wasn't going to let him off easy. 

"I'm not getting that shield back, am I?" Steve asks then, looking between him and Natasha. 

"Technically, it's the government's property. Wings, too." his wife says for him, and he watches as both of the men shake their head. Natasha motions for him to follow her, and they both start to head out. 

"That's cold." he hears Sam say behind him. He turns briefly. 

"Warmer than jail." he says, before continuing to walk. 

"You need to get him to sign. Do whatever you can." Natasha says.

"I know. I'll head back there in a minute. I just want to cool off." She nods sympathetically. 

"If anyone can get him to listen, it's you." she says with a smile, before heading off in the direction of the other, more nicer, Ross. 

He finds Steve later in a room facing the cell they were keeping Barnes in. 

"Hey, you wanna see something cool? I pulled something from Dad's archives. Felt timely." he says to start the conversation, setting the case down in front of Steve. "FDR signed the Lend-Lease bill with these in 1941. Provided support to the Allies when they needed it most." he continued, watching as Steve stared down at the pens. 

"Some would say it brought our country closer to war." Steve responded, and Tony had to fight down the urge to snap at him. 

"See? If not for these, you wouldn't be here. I'm trying to...what do you call it? That's an olive branch. Is that what you call it?" he said instead, trying to mask his annoyance. 

"How's Peter?" Steve asks then, changing the subject. Tony shook his head, but figured he'd see if he could use the casual conversation to persuade the stubborn man. 

"We're kinda...we've been going through some stuff." he responds, carefully. He wasn't sure how much he wanted Steve to know about Peter's recent development. 

"Is he okay?" Steve asked then, brows wrinkled in concern. 

"Yes. Now. He wasn't for a while." he said, his voice coming out a bit rough at the memory. He took a couple deep breaths to calm himself down. 

"I'm so sorry, Tony. I didn't know." Steve said, voice soft and caring. Tony gave him a tight smile. 

"A few months ago, I almost lost him. After, I kinda threw myself into this accords stuff. I don't wanna lose him. I thought maybe the Accords could help keep him safe." he could feel the panic building, so he stood up and began to pace. "I just want to show Peter...and Nat that I can be a better man than my Dad." he said then, immediately wishing he didn't bring up his dad. He liked to avoid that topic with Steve as much as he could. 

"You know, I'm glad Howard got married and started a family. I only knew him when he was young and single." Steve said, thoughtfully. Tony shook his head, his annoyance getting the better of him. 

"Oh, really? You two knew each other? He never mentioned that. Maybe only a thousand times. God, I hated you." He said bitterly, grabbing his suit jacket and putting it back on, straightening his tie. 

"I don't mean to make things difficult." Steve sighed, picking up on Tony's impatience. 

"I know, because you're a very polite person." Tony said kindly, as he walked over to stand by Steve. 

"If I see a situation pointed south...I can't ignore it. Sometimes I wish I could." Tony wanted to scoff at that. 

"No, you don't." he says, and watches as Steve gives him a reluctant smile. 

"No, I don't. Sometimes..." he trails off, and Tony begins to think how to bring the conversation back to the task at hand. 

"Sometimes I wanna punch you in your perfect teeth. But I don't wanna see you gone. We need you, Cap. So far, nothing's happened that can't be undone, if you sign. We can make the last 24 hours legit. Barnes gets transferred to an American psych-center...instead of a Wakandan prison." He says softly, watching as Steve stares at the pens in front of him, before he picks one up and stands up, a thoughtful look on his face. Tony felt himself holding his breath, hoping he finally got through to the man. 

"I'm not saying it's impossible, but there would have to be safeguards." Steve finally says, after a few moments of tense silence. Tony lets out a breath and sits down in the seat Steve just vacated. 

"Sure. Once we put out the PR fire, those documents can be amended. I'd file a motion to have you and Wanda reinstated..." and that must have been the wrong thing to say because Steve then turns to him angrily. 

"Wanda? What about Wanda?" he accuses, and Tony holds up a hand. 

"She's fine. She's confined to the compound, currently. Vision's keeping her company." he says, hoping that would calm the soldier down, but it seems to only make it worse. 

"Oh God, Tony! Every time. Every time I think you see things the right way..." Steve says loudly, his face scrunched in anger. He didn't know where this was coming from, he was only trying to protect the woman from Ross, the guy was out for blood. 

"What? It's a 100 acres with a lap pool. It's got a screening room. There's worse ways to protect people." he says, exasperated at Steve's reaction. 

"Protection? Is that how you see this? This is protection? It's internment, Tony." Steve says, and Tony wants to laugh at the comparison. He may be a terrible person, but he wouldn't stoop that low. It kind of stung that Steve would think he would. 

"She's not a US citizen." he starts to explain. 

"Oh, come on, Tony." Steve sneers, and Tony feels his resolve breaking, he was getting more desperate. He had been so close to getting that signature. 

"And they don't grant visas to weapons of mass destruction." he says in response, his voice rising like Steve's.

"She's a kid!" Steve shouts, and his resolve shatters. He just couldn't argue with a brick wall anymore, it seemed like nothing was going to get through to him. 

"GIVE ME A BREAK!" he shouts, and Steve quiets down, he lets out a tired sigh, his voice shaking slightly. "I'm doing what has to be done...to stave off something worse." he finishes, and Steve gives him a disgusted look and nods. 

"You keep telling yourself that." he spits, setting the pen back down next to the case. "Hate to break up the set." and with that he was gone. Tony felt himself deflate. How many times was he going to mess this up?

\---

"I don't suppose you have any idea where they are?" Ross says then, looking between the two of them. 

"We will. GSG-9's got the borders covered. Recon's flying 24/7. They'll get a hit. We'll handle it." Tony said, squeezing his left wrist under the table. He couldn't feel it, and he knew that wasn't normal. But he couldn't worry about himself right now. 

"You don't get it, Stark. It's not yours to handle. It's clear you can't be objective. I'm putting Special Ops on this." Ross said angrily, and Natasha spoke up. 

"What happens when the shooting starts? What, do you kill Steve Rogers?" she asks incredulously. 

"If we're provoked. Barnes would've been eliminated in Romania if it wasn't for Rogers. There are dead people who would be alive now. Feel free to check my math." Ross spits, his voice clearly throwing the blame in their direction. 

"All due respect, you're not going to solve this with boys in bullets, Ross. You gotta let us bring them in." Tony said, hoping to control what happens next. 

"How would that end any differently from the last time?" Ross scoffs, and Tony stares up at him, his gaze hard. 

"Because this time, I won't be wearing loafers and a silk shirt. 72 hours, guaranteed." he says then, looking away, right hand still working his left wrist. 

"36 hours. Barnes. Rogers. Wilson." Ross finally relents, before walking out of the room, leaving him and his wife alone. She had been sitting across from him to keep their cover from Ross, but she moved closer once he was gone. 

"Thank you, sir." he says to the retreating figure. Once Ross was gone, he rubs a hand over his chest and lets out a shaky breath. He looked up at Natasha, who was staring down at him in concern. 

"My left arm is numb, is that normal?" he asks, still rubbing his chest. She narrows her eyes in worry and sits next to him. 

"You alright?" she asks quietly. He waves her off, and sits back. He can tell she's not happy with his reaction, but he didn't have time to wallow in his self pity. 

"Always. 36 hours, jeez." he sighs, changing the subject. She sends him a glare, that was still laced with concern, before she responds. 

"We're seriously understaffed." she replies, turning to him.

"Oh, yeah. It'd be great if we had a Hulk right about now. Any shot?" Tony asked jokingly. They both knew Bruce was no where to be found. 

"No. You really think he'd be on our side?" she asks, and he shrugs. 

"No." he finally relents. Not if it had anything to do with Ross. Tony hadn't wanted to work with him either, but they had no choice. 

"I have an idea." Natasha breaks the silence. Tony looks at her and eyebrow raised. 

"Me too. Where's yours?" he replies, she looks at him suspiciously. 

"Downstairs. Where's yours?" she asks warily. He just smiles up at her reluctantly. She seems to realize who he means and she shakes her head. 

"No." she says sternly. He hold up both of his hands. 

"Just hear me out. He already thinks he's ready to do this. If we don't let him, he'll do it behind our backs. I'm hoping we can just talk some sense into Rogers, and all Peter will be doing is helping us contain them. It shouldn't end in a fight." Tony said, watching his wife's eyes carefully. There was a storm of emotions flying through the green orbs, and he could tell she was conflicted. 

"Okay. Only to contain. If it ends in a fight, you send him away immediately. Understand?" she says roughly, and he could tell she was struggling with this just as much as he was. 

"Of course. I want him safe just as much as you do." Tony said, and she sighed nodding.

"I know. I didn't mean to make it seem like you didn't. You have his suit ready?" she asked then, Tony nodded. 

"Okay. Go talk to him. And call Clint. His kids definitely don't need him to be a part of this." she said.

"I will. I love you." he said then, and her gaze softened. 

"I love you too. I'd kiss you but there's too many witnesses. I'm going to go see if King T'Challa will help us out. Let me know when you find them."

"Will do." Tony said, and they went their separate ways. 

\---

"Pete I need you to listen carefully." he says later. He was in his car, secure, with Peter's face projected in front of him. He looked concerned at Tony's tone, and nodded seriously. 

"Happy's on his way to come get you. To bring you to Germany. We need your help." Tony said, and he could see Peter trying to mask his excitement. 

"We are only trying to bring them in. You are going to come in and take Cap's shield, and that's it. If a fight breaks out, you hightail it out of there and back to Happy, understand?" he says sternly. 

"Yeah Dad. I got it. I promise." Peter says, nodding quickly. 

"Okay. I'll see you in a bit. And remember what I said. You stay safe no matter what." he demands.

"I know Dad. I will." Peter said, and Tony nodded before waving the call away, letting out a shaky sigh. He really hoped he was doing the right thing. He had one more call to make. He dialed Clint's number and took a breath to compose himself. 

"Tony! What's going on? Cap just called saying he needed me to come in? That you and Tasha were trying to bring them in?" Clint asked as soon as he answered, his face confused. Tony could hear the kids in the background. 

"It's complicated. They've done some stuff against the Accords. And we have to bring them in before Ross sends out Special Ops." Tony explains, and Clint's face grows serious. He seemed to be contemplating something, before he looked back up at Tony. 

"Do you need me?" he asked. Tony shook his head. 

"No. That's why I called. We can figure it out. If this goes south, you could get arrested. Laura and the kids don't deserve that." he replies, his voice pleading. Clint shook his head, before Laura came onto the screen. 

"Tony. Do you need Clint?" she asked sternly. Tony looked between them for a few seconds and could see the determination on Clint's face. 

"It wouldn't hurt." he relented. Laura nodded. 

"Then he'll come. I trust you and Nat to keep him safe. You guys are our family too." Laura says gently. Tony blinks back the tears threatening to come. 

"Thank you." he said, voice hoarse. Laura sent him a wink before exiting the frame and Clint nodded seriously. 

"Where do you need me?" he asks. 

"Germany." Tony answers, and watches as Clint starts grabbing his things. 

"Okay. I'll be there as fast as I can." he says, pausing his packing to look at Tony. 

"Thanks Clint." he says gratefully, before hanging up. 

\---

"Wow, it's so weird how you run into people at the airport. Don't you think that's weird?" He says sarcastically, directing his question at Rhodey, who had just landed next to him. 

"Definitely weird." Rhodey replied, looking at him. He opened his face plate to catch the exasperated look Steve sent them. 

"Hear me out, Tony. That doctor, the psychiatrist, he's behind all of this." Steve said, and Tony furrowed his eyebrows a bit. He had not idea what Steve was talking about, but before he could ask T'Challa made his dramatic appearance. 

"Captain." the man says in greeting. Tony sighs. 

"Your highness." Steve says back, always polite. 

"Anyway, Ross gave me 36 hours to bring you in. That was 24 hours ago. Can you help a brother out?" Tony started again, walking around Rhodey. 

"You're after the wrong guy." Steve says simply, as if what he was preparing to do was normal. As if fighting his friends, was normal. 

"Your judgment is askew. Your old war buddy killed innocent people yesterday." he replied sharply, trying to get the man to see reason. 

"And there are five more super soldiers just like him. I can't let the doctor find them first, Tony. I can't." Steve said, which caught Tony's attention. Steve sounded insane, what super soldiers? He certainly hadn't mentioned anything to Tony. He saw Natasha and Clint come out from behind Steve. He watched as Steve narrowed his eyes at Clint's presence. 

"Steve...you know what's about to happen. Do you really wanna punch your way out of this one?" his wife says calmly. Tony looked around, his patience thinning. 

"All right, I've run out of patience. Hey, Underoos!" he called, holding his hands up to his mouth. He watches as his kid shoots a web, and steals Steve's shield and binds the man's hands, all while flipping and landing in a crouch. He had to fight to keep his face neutral, even though on the inside he was marveling over what his son could do. "Nice job, kid." he says, impassively. 

"Thanks. Well, I could've stuck the landing a little better. It's just the new suit… Well, it's nothing, Mr. Stark. It's--it's perfect. Thank you." Peter responds, voice modulator protecting his voice from the others. He had made sure Peter's suit did that, and made sure Peter knew not to let them know who he was. 

"Yeah, we don't really need to start a conversation." Tony said letting out a small laugh at his son's rambling. 

"Okay. Cap...Captain. Big fan, I'm Spider-Man." Peter said then, and Tony had to resist the urge to tell Peter to stop talking. 

"Yeah, we'll talk about it later. Just..." he made a stopping motion with his hand, but that didn't seem to deter Peter's excitement. 

"Hey, everyone." Peter said again, and Tony sighed, sending him a hard look. He seemed to get it then, and stopped talking. He glanced at Natasha and saw that she was fighting a fond smile. Clint seemed to be suspicious though, looking between the three of them.

"Good job." he said one last time, before turning back to Steve. 

"You've been busy." he comments. He clenches his jaw in anger. 

"And you've been a complete idiot. Trying to drag in Clint. 'Rescuing' Wanda from a place she doesn't even want to leave, a safe place. I'm trying to keep...I'm trying to keep you from tearing the Avengers apart." he said, his voice wavering between yelling and whispering. He was having a hard time keeping his anger in check. 

"You did that when you signed." Steve said. And Tony felt something inside him shift. He looked at the man he once thought was his friend, someone he trusted with his family, and saw no trust reflecting back. He knew what he needed to say. He clenched his fist, forcing his voice to come out calm. 

"No. Rogers. You did that when you lied." he said eerily calm. Steve's face shifted into confusion, while Natasha, Clint and Rhodey looked at him in shock. Peter seemed uncomfortable, looking between everyone. 

"December 16th, 1991. Ring any bells?" he asks then, his voice still dangerously calm, after a few moments of silence. He sees the moment that Steve understands, because the man's eyes go wide for a second, before he schools his expression back into one of confusion. Tony forces himself to fight the urge to punch that look of his face. 

"What are you talking about Tony?" Steve asks, and Tony lets out an dry laugh. So that's how his "friend" was going to play it. Natasha walked over to his side, and placed a hand on his shoulder softly. He shook it off, gritting his teeth in anger. 

"You knew. You have known this entire time. About what happened to my parents. And you didn't even have to nerve to tell me to my face. You lied, and then spouted all this shit about honesty after Ultron? While you were keeping the biggest secret from me?" Tony said. Steve's face had grown pale at every word that Tony spoke, his face now ghostly white. 

"How did you know?" he asks quietly. Tony shook his head, biting his lip. He saw Bucky, Sam, and Wanda come out from the airport, apparently giving up on stealth at this new information. 

"How do you think Rogers? Tasha told me, after Shield fell. And I had to sit there for years, waiting for you to tell me, and you never did." Steve opened his mouth, before closing it, not seeming to know what to say. 

"What is he talking about Mister Stark?" he heard Peter ask behind him. He whipped around, remembering that he was there. He looked at Natasha for help, but she shrugged, at a loss of what to do. 

"Clint, can you take Spider-Man back to the jet. I'll call you if I need you." Clint looked between everyone, but nodded. He knew Peter wanted to protest, but he sent him a look, and his son just nodded, and followed Clint. When they were out of earshot, Tony turned back around.

"Do you have any idea...what it felt like to find out that my parents were murdered? And then to have to sit there and wait for you to tell me...only to realize that you were never going to. Not if it went against your best bud right? He came back, and now there's no room for anyone else?" Tony said bitterly, but tiredly. He was just so tired. He didn't know if all of this was worth it. Clearly Steve didn't think much of him, so why was he going through so much trouble to save him?

"Is that true, Steve?" Sam asked then, when it was clear Steve didn't know what to say. Steve looked between them, and eventually he nodded. 

"Look, Tony. That's messed up. Steve messed up. But right now, we have intel that someone is trying to wake up other super soldiers like Bucky. Let Steve and Bucky go handle them, and the rest of us will come with you. Give them enough time to take care of the threat and we can figure out the rest." Sam said diplomatically. It made sense. If they were telling the truth, Steve and Bucky would be the only ones equipped to handle that kind of threat. He looked at Steve, who still seemed reluctant to say anything. He let out a sigh, but nodded. 

He walked up to Steve quietly, activating a knife from his suit, and cut Peter's webs off of the man's wrists. He looked at Steve thoughtfully. 

"I know I don't look like it and I know I don't act like it, but I'm not as invincible as I pretend to be." he starts, looking Steve in the eyes. Steve was watching him warily, guilt still shining in his eyes. Tony wasn't buying it however, and he was done trying. 

"I'm not a super soldier, I'm not a super spy, or a God, or a giant green rage monster," he continued, backing up, motioning for Sam and Wanda to come forward, and they did, Natasha and Rhodey moving past him to collect them.

"I'm just a man in a can and when I fall I bleed." he finishes tiredly, voice breaking to a whisper. He gave Steve a broken smile, before leading the others back to the jet. 

"Hey, come here." Natasha said, once they were back on the jet and Sam and Wanda were secure. She brought Tony to the other side of the jet, helping him sit down after his disengaged his suit. He felt like he was underwater, and he couldn't get his lungs to fill with air. He looked up at Natasha in panic, and she shushed him gently. 

"Shhh, it's okay. It's over for now. We will figure out the rest. Just breathe." Tony nodded jerkily, trying to follow her instructions. His chest still felt tight, and he could feel the tears burning streaks down his face. 

"Why didn't he tell me?" he asked, his voice a whisper, breaking a few times. Natasha let out a sad sigh. 

"I don't know. I wish I did." she said softly, rubbing her hand up and down his arm, pressing a kiss gently on the crown of his head.

"Is he okay?" he barely hears the hesitant voice directed at them. 

"No. But he will be. Don't worry, bug." he hears Natasha respond quietly. He knew it must have been Peter, but he didn't have the energy to reassure him. He felt his eyes grow heavy, but he fought it, there was still so much to do. As if reading his mind, a hand settled on his shoulder. 

"We can take it from here, Dad. Just sleep. I'll protect you." he heard Peter's voice say gently. He felt his heart warm at the words from his son, before he nodded sluggishly. 

"'course you will. Love you, bug." he slurs, before sleep finally claimed him. 

\---

Natasha looked up from her husbands now sleeping face. Peter was sitting there watching his father, his mask still in place. His fingers were tapping frantically on his knee, a nervous habit he had picked up from Tony. 

"He'll be okay." she said quietly, eyeing the people on the other side of the jet. Clint was flying, his face grim and his shoulders stiff. Sam and Wanda were sitting on the benches, heads hanging low, whispering to each other, while Rhodey stood over them menacingly, while also shooting looks over at Tony every now and then. 

"What...I mean why...what happened?" Peter said then, his voice coming out in a stutter, which only came out when he was worked up, another thing that he got from Tony. Natasha sighed. 

"Steve...knew something about what happened to your grandparents. And he didn't tell your Dad about it, and apparently he never planned to. That broke Dad's trust, and I think today he finally gave up on giving Steve the benefit of the doubt." she said softly, watching as the eyes on her son's suit went wide. She wished they weren't on an open jet, so she could actually see his face. 

"Is that why he would flinch sometimes when I called him Uncle Steve?" Peter broke the silence, his voice sad. Natasha furrowed her eyebrows, looking back, she came to the same conclusion. 

"Probably. Is that why you stopped calling him that? We thought you were just being a teenager." Natasha said, attempting a joke, but Peter didn't react, his gaze still fixed on Tony. He shook his head. 

"No, I stopped because it seemed to make Dad upset, I didn't like that. I had no idea it was this bad though." Peter said, his voice shaking slightly. 

"Hey, come here." Natasha said softly, patting the bench next to her. Peter looked up and then to the other side of the jet. Natasha looked too, and no one seemed to be paying attention, so she nodded her ascent. Peter hopped up and sat next to her, curling into her side, like he always did. She placed her arm over his shoulder and noticed he was shaking, so she rubbed his arm. 

"Hey, he's strong. He'll be okay. He's got you to take care of him now, right?" she said softly, and she could hear Peter sniff a couple times, before he nodded. 

"See? He'll be okay." she reassured, pressing a kiss to the top of his head, feeling him calm slightly under her touch. They sat there silently for the rest of the flight, Natasha's hands moving gently through Tony's hair, as Peter fell asleep on her shoulder. 

When they arrived, Natasha decided to stay put, until the others were gone, before she would wake up her boys. But her plan changed when Rhodey and Clint walked over as soon as Wanda and Sam were taken into custody. 

"We just got news, they found the real psychologist dead. I think Steve was right, that man who triggered Bucky is up to something." Rhodey said quietly, his face grim. Natasha swore under her breath. 

"That means the super soldier threat is real. I'm going to need to talk to Sam. See where they were headed, and I'll meet them there. They are going to need more help, and I've dealt with super soldiers like Bucky before." she said quietly, trying not to wake her husband and son. They wouldn't like this plan at all and she knew it. 

Clint narrowed his eyes at her, and let out a sigh. 

"You're sure?" he asked, and she nodded. He accepted this answer, and sent a nod to Rhodey, who agreed. 

"What do you need us to do?" Rhodey asked. She looked down at the man sleeping on her lap, and the boy on her shoulder, and sighed. 

"Jim, I need you to deal with Ross. Make sure Wanda and Sam are treated fairly until we can figure out the next step. Clint, I need you to stay with these two, keep them safe and away from Ross." Natasha said, and they both nodded, before Rhodey headed out of the jet. 

"Give me a minute." she said, and Clint nodded, before leaving as well. She gently shook Peter awake. 

"Mama? What's wrong?" he asked, his voice thick with sleep. She tapped his mask, and he looked around quickly, before taking it off. She smiled at his big brown eyes and ruffled hair. 

"I need to go. I need you to stay with Dad and Clint. Make sure they stay safe, okay? Just until I get back." she said, and Peter looked confused, but nodded seriously.

"Okay. I can do that." he said, face now set in determination. 

"I know you can, bug. I love you. Take good care of your Dad." she said softly, pressing a kiss to his hair, before removing herself gently out from under Tony's head. He shifted slightly, but stayed asleep. 

She walked out to where Clint was standing outside the jet, face hard. 

"Take them to the Tower, there's a room Peter knows about, go there. I'll contact you when I can." she said, and Clint nodded.

"Be safe, Tasha." he said, and she sent him a wink, before heading into the building to find Sam.

\---

He heard a huff of quiet laughter, when he finally came too. He blinked his eyes open, and realized he wasn't in the jet anymore. He sprung up, and looked around wildly. He was in the secret room in his lab, where he sent Peter when they needed to keep their cover. He looked around some more, and noticed Clint and Peter across the room, signing back and forth. Clint must have said something funny, because Peter was struggling not to laugh. 

He watched them fondly for a moment, before he realized that Natasha was no where to be seen. That sent a wave of panic down his spine. 

"Where's Tasha?" he asked, voice hoarse. Peter jumped a bit at his voice, before they both turned his way. 

"Dad!" Peter shouted, running over to his side. "I thought you were going to sleep forever." he continued, sitting down next to Tony and leaning his weight into his side. He automatically curled an arm around his son, but he looked at Clint. 

"Where's Nat?" he asked again, and Clint gave him a guilty smile. 

"She went to help Rogers and Barnes with the super soldiers. We got intel that confirmed the threat." he said, and Tony felt like he was doused in ice water, his breath stalling in his chest. 

"No. No. No. She can't. Those are super soldiers. She won't make it out." Tony said, and by the look on Clint's face, the other man agreed. Peter seemed to stiffen next to him, and he remembered where he was, he forced himself to calm down and breathe. 

"Okay. Okay. Um, has she contacted you?" Tony asked, his voice significantly calmer. 

"Just once to say Sam gave her the intel, and she was headed to Siberia." Tony nodded a few times, tapping his fingers on his thigh. He nodded once more, before standing up suddenly. 

"Okay. I guess we just wait for news. I'm gonna...I'm gonna call Rhodey, and see if he needs help yelling at government officials...yeah." he said, his chest bubbling with anxiety. He looked around at the two of them, they were both eyeing him worriedly but he waved them off and headed to his desk on the other side of the room. 

Several hours and a couple thousand phone calls later, Tony had figured the whole thing out, but they still hadn't heard from Natasha. He walked over to where Clint and Peter were playing a card game, that looked suspiciously like poker. 

"Are you teaching my kid bad habits, birdbrain?" he asked Clint, who looked up with an innocent smile. 

"If you're talking about Go Fish, then yes." Clint said innocently, sending Peter an exaggerated wink. Tony rolled his eyes. He was glad Clint was there, he was great with keeping Peter calm, when Tony couldn't. 

"Well, I just got off the phone with the President. They took Ross off the Accords and put the other Ross on them. Sam and Wanda got off with house arrest for six months, but Barnes and Rogers were harder to figure out. They still want them locked up. So once we hear word, we can go from there." Tony said, sitting down next to Peter and looking over his cards. Clint raised an impressed eyebrow. 

"Nice going, Tin Can. I knew we kept you around for a reason." Clint said, earning a snort from Peter. Tony narrowed his eyes at his son and riffled his hair. 

"The disrespect. Maybe I should send you off with Clint, huh? Make you live on a farm the rest of your life?" Tony teased, and Peter just rolled his eyes with a laugh. They all broke out in laughter, which was quickly ended by the sound of Tony's phone ringing. 

"Sorry bud, probably another government dude." Tony said, pressing a kiss to Peter's forehead before walking back over to his desk. He answered without looking.

"Stark." he said, ready to schmooze whatever person he needed to, when a unexpected voice answered back. 

"What kind of greeting is that?" he felt his jaw drop a bit. 

"Tasha?" he asked in disbelief, earning the attention from Clint and Peter, who rushed over. "Are you okay?" he asked when he regained his composure. He deflated in relief when she let out a soft laugh. 

"I'm fine. Turns out Zemo wasn't interested in the soldiers. He killed them all before we got there. He seemed to think you were going to show up. He somehow knew that Steve hadn't told you about your parents, he had the video. I think he wanted to cause a rift between the Avengers...break them up." Natasha said, voice calm. Tony blinked a few times in shock. 

"He killed them? So what happened?" he asked curiously, Peter and Clint watching him. He heard her sigh. 

"He tried to run, when he realized his plan wouldn't work. But T'Challa had followed me there, and was waiting for him outside. We have him in custody. It's over." she said, a hint of relief in her voice, along with something else. 

"Rogers?" Tony asked quietly. 

"Went to Wakanda with Barnes. T'Challa said they could fix the triggers, offered them refuge. Rogers says he's staying off the grid until Bucky's better, and the Accords are gone." Natasha said, a hint of annoyance in her voice. Tony let out a chuckle in disbelief. 

"Wow. Okay. That's fine. He has to do what he thinks is right I guess. And to think I went to bat for him again." he said bitterly. 

"What do you mean?" she asked softly, voice curious. 

"I've been on the phone for hours. Got Ross kicked off, so we could amend the Accords to something Rogers would sign. I got Wanda and Sam free. Everything was set, and yet he still thinks he knows better." Tony scoffed, watching as Clint motioned for Peter to go back to playing cards, which Peter followed. 

"Tony. He was going to do what was best for Bucky. No matter what. Just...he made his choice, now you can move on. You don't need to fight his battles anymore. Just let him handle his own mess fro once. Okay?" she said after a few moments, and Tony nodded. 

"Yeah. Okay. When will you be home?" he asked then. 

"Two hours. I'll see you then. Let me talk to Pete." she requests, and he motions for Peter to come over. 

"Here, it's Mom." Tony says, handing the phone to an excited Peter. 

"Hey Mama!" Peter greets, a smile on his face. Tony watches with a fond smile as Peter answers his mother's questions excitedly. He feels Clint walk up beside him. 

"You did good. Now it's over." Clint said. Tony nodded, eyes still locked on Peter.

"Yeah. Let's hope so." he responds. 

  
SPIDER-MAN WILL RETURN....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did you think?? Let me know!!
> 
> I haven't wrote the post credit scene yet...so if there's something you really want to see let me know!
> 
> Thanks for all the amazing feedback on this story! I didn't think it would get this popular honestly! So I'm glad you all are loving it!
> 
> Leave a comment!


	12. Post-Credit Scene

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I meant to post this soon after the last chapter, but I changed the idea for it and wrote a whole new one after inspiration struck so yay. 
> 
> With this quarantine crap going on who knows, maybe stuff with come a lot quicker...but no promises I don't want to rush anything cause I really want to do these characters and this story justice.
> 
> I hope you like it! This will tie into Homecoming obviously, which is the next chapter...coming soon!
> 
> The video Tony is watching is in Italics :)

_"Daddy!" Peter squealed. He was two or three years old in the video Tony was watching in the dark. He was sitting at a small table, blocks scattered in front of him. _

_"Hey Petey-Pie." He heard his younger self say behind the camera. His younger self sat down across from the boy. _

_"Hey Pete. I know you're a bit too young to understand...but I wanted to ask your permission about something." Tony's voice said, and Peter was staring at him with his eyes wide. _

_"Daddy's sad?" Peter asked quietly, his attention now fully on Tony, blocks forgotten._

Tony could remember the hesitation he felt then, even years later. 

_"No...not exactly bubba. You remember Natasha? Daddy's friend?" Tony's voice was shaky, even over the video._

Tony let out a deep breath at the memory. 

_"Tash!" Peter agreed happily, a smile lighting up his face. The Tony behind the camera let out a fond laugh. _

_"Yeah bug, Tash. Would it be okay with you if we let her join our family?" Young Tony asked._

Tony leaned forward in his seat, eyes focused on the small Peter on the screen.

_Peter's eyebrows were drawn and his small tongue was sticking out of his mouth in thought. _ _After a couple moments he looked up, a shy smile on his face. _

_"Like a new Mommy?" he asked, his voice small. The camera fumbled a bit, showing younger Tony's surprise at the question._

_"Y-yeah bug...if that's okay with you?" Tony's voice was hesitant still. Peter let out a small giggle. _

_"I want a new Mommy. Can Tash be my new Mommy?" Peter asked then, focus back on the blocks he was stacking in front of him. When Tony didn't answer right away, he looked up again curiously. _

_"Daddy?" his small voice asked. The camera moved suddenly again before a voice spoke up again. _

_"You know what bud? Why don't we go ask Tash if she wants to be your new Mommy?" Tony's voice asked. Peter jumped up quickly. _

_"Yeah yeah! Now! Come on!" Peter shouted, jumping a couple times before grabbing Tony's hand._

Tony reached forward and stopped the video. He rubbed his hands down his face, and let out a deep sigh. 

"Now, now. It was just getting to my favorite part." A voice spoke up behind him. He turned to see Natasha standing in the doorway, hair still mussed up from sleep. She gave him a sleepy smile, before walking forward and playing the video again. 

Tony watched her for a moment, before turning his attention back to the screen, where Tony and Peter had just found Natasha in the gym. 

_"Tash!" Peter squealed, earning the younger Natasha's attention. Her hair was longer, and a darker shade of red than it was now. She stopped her exercises to catch Peter as he launched himself in her direction. _

_"Hey, Pete. What are you guys up to?" Natasha asked, voice soft, as she tweaked Peter's nose. Peter let out a giggle, before looking towards Tony. The other man set down the camera somewhere, before walking over to the two of them, still in the frame. Natasha furrowed her eyebrows as he came closer. _

_"Tony, why are you all pale?" she asked, a hand reaching out to cup his face. Tony shook his head. _

_"Peter has a question for you." Tony said, poking his son in the stomach. The little boy nodded with a smile. Natasha's face softened as she looked at him. _

_"Okay. Peter. What is your question?" she asked softly. _

_"Will you be my new Mommy...Daddy said you could...if you wanna?" Peter asked, suddenly shy, playing with the chain of Natasha's necklace. The woman's eyes widened and snapped to Tony. _

_"Is...is this your way of proposing?" she asked once she got over her shock. She was now looking at him with a fond but exasperated look. Tony gave her a soft smirk._

_"If that's okay with you?" the man asked quietly, Peter's eyes flitting between the two, watching._

_"It's perfect. Peter, I would love to be your new Mom." Natasha said after a moment, directing her last words to the small boy still in her arms. _

_"Yay!" Peter cheered, throwing his small arms around her neck in a hug. Natasha gave Tony a small smile over the small boy's head. _

And that's when the video ended_._ They both sat there in silence for a moment staring at the dark screen. 

"Couldn't sleep?" Natasha asked then, settling in his lap. Tony shook his head, eyes still fixed on the screen, but his arms moved around her waist. 

"Was it the same dream again?" she asked when he didn't answer. He shook his head again, but this time she stayed silent, waiting for him to speak up. 

"Peter's been begging me to let him patrol around Queens." Tony finally said, bringing up what had been plaguing his thoughts for the last couple hours. 

"Why Queens?" Natasha asked. Tony shrugged. 

"He wouldn't tell me. But that's where...that's where Mary was from. Maybe that's why." he said quietly, and Natasha nodded thoughtfully, pressing a kiss to his forehead. 

"And you don't want him to?" she asked after a couple minutes. Tony let out a sigh, and dropped his head onto her shoulder. 

"I don't know. I'm just so worried he's going to get in over his head. I don't want him to get hurt. I don't..." he trailed off, his breath coming in a little quicker. Natasha shushed him gently, and swayed them back and forth until his breathing evened out. 

"You don't want him to go through what you've gone through." she states quietly, and he feels his shoulders slump in defeat. 

"I don't think he realizes the toll this kind of job takes." he whispers. He feels her hands come up to grab his face, and gently move it up, his eyes meeting hers. 

"Then we help him through it." she says quietly. He studies the green in her eyes for a minute, before nodding. 

"Yeah. We will." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think!! 
> 
> Should I try and incorporate more flashbacks/memories in homecoming? Or just focus on the plot? What do you guys want?
> 
> Thanks for all the support and the comments! They really keep me going!


	13. Spider-Man Homecoming

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi...I hope you like this!
> 
> It was a bit harder to write, cause I had to do Peter's POV, which I hadn't done for this story yet, so I hope I did him justice. 
> 
> I hope you don't hate what I did with it. But I am completely changing how Infinity War and Endgame go, so I had to change some things here to fit. 
> 
> If you hate it...don't tell me cause it will make me sad. But let me know what you want to see next.

Peter landed in a crouch on the ledge outside, JARVIS automatically opening the lab window for him. He walks in quietly, about to tell his dad he was home when he stopped in his tracks. Tony was asleep on the lab couch, a video playing in front of him. Peter walked closer, trying to be as quiet as possible, and looked at the screen. He was surprised when he saw his younger self riding a bike with Tony running behind him and his mother's laughter coming from behind the camera. 

Peter furrowed his eyebrows, and looked between the TV and his dad for a few moments, before placing a blanket gently over Tony's body and heading upstairs. 

"Mama?" he called as he walked into the living room. 

"In the kitchen!" his super hearing picked up, and he headed that way. When he walked in his mom was standing at the stove stirring something in a big pot. 

"Hey, bug. How was patrol?" she said, turning to him quick enough to send him a warm smile, before turning her attention back to the pot. 

"It was good. Saved a cat from a tree." he said with a shrug, sitting down at the island counter. 

"How brave of you." his mom replied with a wink, setting a bowl of stew in front of him. He looked down at it before giving her a curious look. She only made this soup, an old Russian recipe, when one of them was sick or having a bad day. She gave him a strained smile, and shook her head a bit, before turning and dishing some for herself. Once she was done, she walked over and settled herself down across from him. 

"He fell asleep watching old home videos." Peter spoke up after a couple minutes of silence. His mom eyed him for a moment before nodding. 

"Sounds about right. I'll bring him down some later." she said, her voice quiet, but he could hear the worry. 

"You wanna tell me why he's doing that?" Peter asked finally, when she didn't say anything else. She let out a sigh, and pushed her bowl away from her to set her elbows on the table. 

"I honestly don't know Pete. He's been struggling with everything that happened in Germany. Fighting with Steve, me going off without telling him...you being Spider-Man. It's been a tough couple of months." she said, and Peter set his spoon down with a sigh. 

"So it's because of me?" he said, a lump in his throat. His mom shook her head and stood up, walking over to pull him into a hug. 

"No baby. He's just worried. He doesn't want you to have to go through all the things he has gone through. He wants to protect you, but he just doesn't know how. He..." she trails off suddenly, and Peter pulls away. 

"He what?" He asks, and she sits back down, but this time right next to him. 

"You know how Dad and I met?" she asked, changing the subject suddenly. Peter shook his head after a second, curious as to why she was bringing that up. 

"We met at a Stark gala, that his parents were hosting. I think he was about...16. Something like that. I was sent to spy on the Stark family, gather intel, your grandpa was working on things the...the people I worked for, wanted to know about. I found out a lot more than I ever intended." she said, her voice quiet and eyes unfocused as if she was reliving the memory. He stayed quiet, waiting for her to continue. After a few moments, she looked up and met his eyes with a pained smile. 

"His father...your grandpa...wasn't very nice to him growing up Pete." she said, and Peter's eyes widened. 

"Did he...did he hurt Dad?" Peter asked, voice stuttered. His mom closed her eyes and nodded quickly. 

"Yeah, bud. He did." she whispered, and Peter shook his head a few times, his mind going a mile a minute. 

"What does that have to do with me?" he asked. She reached out a hand and cupped his face. 

"Because your Dad, is _terrified_ of turning into Howard when it comes to you. So he wants to protect you, but he also doesn't want to push you away or make you think he doesn't believe in you. It's hard for him to figure out the balance. It was easier when you were younger, which is why I think he's been watching those videos, he's trying to find the answer somehow. You know him, he won't stop until he figures it out." she said, and Peter fell quiet for a few moments, lost in his thoughts. 

"Did he ever get mad? Dad...was he mad when he found out you were spying on his family?" he asked after a few moments of staring at his soup. Natasha let out a small laugh. 

"By the time he found out, we had gotten to know each other really well. I loved him, and I think he loved me at that point. He was mad, but I think eventually he realized that despite how it happened, he finally found someone who would understand him in ways no one else could. From there he just tried to get me to leave the Red Room behind." she said with a fond laugh. 

"Did you?" he asked. 

"Eventually, once Clint showed up. Tony convinced me to go with him, and stay." she said, her voice filled with fondness. She sent him a wink, before taking a bowl down to the lab. 

"Is there anything I can do. To make him feel better?" Peter asked later that night, when they were standing side by side, doing the dishes. His mom looked up from the bowl she was rinsing with a thoughtful look. 

"Just listen. Even if what he's asking sounds ridiculous, it's the only way he thinks he can protect you. And you can be mad if he gets pushy, just make sure he knows you don't hate him for it." she said, and Peter nodded in determinism. 

"I'll try my best." he said, taking the bowl from her to dry. 

"I know you will, bug." his mom replied, pressing a gentle kiss to his forehead. 

\---

"You ready for school, Pete? I thought I'd drive you." he looked up from his phone to see his dad poking his head into the kitchen. He smiled. 

"Yeah, just let me get my bag." he said, rushing to his room. He remembered what his mom said to him the night before, and was determined to make sure his dad knew he loved him, no matter what. 

"Okay I'm ready!" he announced waling back into the room, to see his Dad waiting for him. He tried to ignore the deep circles that were very prominent under his dad's eyes. His dad nodded, before they both headed to the garage. The other man was strangely quiet until they got about halfway to school. 

"You know, you did really good in Germany, Pete." his dad started, voice unusually hesitant. 

"I know. You've told me. I didn't do that much honestly." Peter said, looking out the window at the other cars. 

"You did enough. I'm proud of you for helping when you were needed, and that you listened to me when I told you to back out." his dad said, and Peter had a feeling he knew where this was going. 

"Thanks Dad." he said as a way to prompt his dad to continue, but he was silent until they pulled up a block away from his school. They usually dropped Peter off here, so he could walk the rest of the way under the radar. When the car stopped, Tony turned in his seat to face him, so he did the same. 

"I just want to make sure, that even though I'm letting you patrol and be Spider-Man...that you will listen to me if I tell you that you are getting in over your head." his dad finally said, his eyes focused out of the window behind Peter's head, avoiding eye contact. Peter studied him for a moment, he could see the tension in his shoulders, and he could hear his dad's heart beating slightly faster than normal with anxiety. 

"I'll try my best Dad, you know that." Peter said, and his dad finally met his eyes with a relieved smile. 

"Good. Now go. Learn something." his dad said, turning back to the wheel, shoving some pink tinted glasses on his face. 

"No promises. Love you, Dad." Peter said, waiting for the reply before he stepped out of the car. 

"Love you too, bug." his dad said, and he smiled, getting out of the car and heading the rest of the way to school. 

\---

"Join me, and together...we’ll build my new Lego Death Star." he heard a voice come from behind him. When he turned he saw Ned standing there with a Lego figurine in his hand. 

"What?" he asked in wonder, looking at Ned's excited face."No way! That’s awesome. How many pieces?" his voice quiet, but filled with excitement. 

"Three thousand eight hundred and three." Ned replies in a proud voice. 

"That’s insane." Peter breathes. 

"I know. You want to build it tonight?" Ned asks, and Peter feels his stomach tighten, just like it always does when he has to lie to Ned about his identity. 

"No, I can’t tonight. I’ve got the Stark-" he starts, before Ned interrupts him.

"Mm-hmm. Stark internship." Peter could hear a bit of disappointment in his voice.

"Yeah, exactly." he says, apologetically, before grabbing the rest of his books and closing his locker.

"Always got that internship." Ned says, but he doesn't sound too upset, so Peter hopes he isn't.

"Yeah, well, hopefully, soon it’ll lead to a real job with them." Peter says, keeping up the cover story they came up with when he started high school.

"That would be so sweet." Ned gushes, and Peter knows he not upset. 

"Right?"

"He’d be all, 'Good job on those spreadsheets, Peter. Here’s a gold coin.'" Ned says, making his voice sound different as he imitated Tony. Peter tries not to laugh while sending Ned a look. 

"I don’t know how jobs work." Ned admits, and Peter finally lets out a laugh. 

"That’s exactly how they work." Peter assures him as a joke. 

"Oh. I’ll knock out the basic bones of the Death Star at my place. And, and then I’ll come by afterwards..." Ned continues, but Peter zones out when he gets distracted by Liz walking by. 

"...because for the most part, the difficult thing is the base of it. The top half we can knock out in two hours, tops." Ned finishes, and is waiting for Peter's response. To avoid having to explain why he wasn't listening, Peter just agrees.

"That’d be great."

\---

"Peter, it’s nationals. Is there no way you could take one weekend off?" Mr. Harrington was asking him later that day during Decathlon practice. He didn't want to go anymore for several reasons, one was Spider-Man, but the other was definitely because he was worried about his Dad. 

"I can’t go to Washington because if Mr. Stark needs me, then I have to make sure that I’m here." he explained, getting as close to the truth as possible. 

"You’ve never even been in the same room as Tony Stark." Flash pipes in, and Peter rolls his eyes. No one but Ned believed him about the internship, which was fine, it meant the cover was working at least somewhat. 

"Wait, what’s happening?" Cindy speaks up, earning the attention of everyone. 

"Peter’s not going to Washington." Sally pipes in, apparently she had been listening the whole time. 

"No. No, no, no, no, no. No. No." Cindy mutters, looking at him with betrayal. They hear one of the answer bells ding, and they all turn to Abe.

"Why not?" he asks. 

"Really? Right before nationals?" Liz asks, catching Peter off guard before he could answer Abe. 

"He already quit marching band and robotics lab." Michelle says, when he doesn't say anything, and he looks at her in confusion. He did, to make more time for Spider-Man, but how did she notice?

"I’m not obsessed with him. Just very observant." she explains when everyone else looks at her. Everyone stayed quiet for a few moments. 

"Flash, you’re in for Peter." Liz says, and Peter sighs in relief. 

"Ooh, I don’t know. I gotta check my calendar first. I got a hot date with Black Widow coming up." Flash says, looking at his phone. The bell rings again. 

"That is false." Abe says, and Mr. Harrington sighs. 

"What did I tell you about using the bell for comedic purposes?" he asks in a tired voice, and Peter just lets out a sigh. 

\---

Peter sat down on a roof and pulled out his phone. 

"You have reached the voicemail box of Tony Stark." Peter frowned, but decided to leave a message. His dad was either in a meeting or fell asleep in the lab again. 

"Hey, Dad! Um, here’s my report for tonight. I stopped a grand theft bicycle. Couldn’t find the owner, so I just left a note. Um... I helped this lost, old Dominican lady. She was really nice and bought me a churro. So I just, um, feel like I could be doing more. You know? But I know you want me close to the ground. I'll see you later for dinner." He hangs up and drops his head with a sigh. 

"Why would I tell him about the churro?" he asks himself, head aimed towards the sky. He decides to head back, when he sees the bank robbers. 

\---

"What in the world were you thinking?" his mom's voice screams in his ear as soon as he starts webbing away from Delmar's. He winces at the worry in her voice, beneath the anger. 

"Uh...I don't really know. I just saw them trying to rob the ATM and I knew I had to do something. I didn't think they would have such high tech weapons!" Peter said, stopping on a roof top. She heard Natasha let out a sigh on the other end. 

"Peter. Just...hurry home okay? You're father is a nervous wreck. I had to stop him from coming to pick you up, literally." she said, her voice tired. Peter felt guilt settle in his stomach for making things worse for his parents. 

"I'm sorry Mama." He said quietly, standing to get ready to leave. 

"I know. Just come home." she said, her voice slightly lighter, but still strained. He nodded before he realized she couldn't see him. 

"Okay, I just need to go pick up a book from May and Ben's from when I was studying with Ned the other day." Peter said, hoping she wouldn't be too mad. 

"Okay. Be quick." she said, before ending the call. Peter let out a deep sigh, he was definitely in for it once he got home. He quickly started webbing towards May and Ben's. 

He got to his window, having already texted May saying he was coming in, and since she already knew about Spider-Man, he slipped inside. 

He crawled on the roof and over to his desk before he heard a loud crash behind him. He whirled around to see Ned standing there in shock, the Death Star shattered in pieces on the floor. Peter hurried out of his suit. 

"What was that?" he heard May call, so she must have known Ned was here but forgot to mention it. 

"Uh, it’s nothing. It’s nothing!" he called to her, hearing her let out a chuckle with his super hearing. 

"You’re the Spider-Man. From YouTube." Ned finally said, his voice full of shock. 

"I’m not. I’m not." Peter hurried, even though he knew denying it was futile. 

"You were on the ceiling." Ned said, and Peter let out a defeated sigh. 

"No, I wasn’t. Ned, what are you doing in my room?" he asked, trying to distract his friend. 

"May let me in. You said we were gonna finish the Death Star." Ned said defensively, and Peter realized that's probably what Ned was talking about when he zoned out earlier. 

"You can’t just bust into my room!" Peter barely contained himself from shouting, when he heard May's footsteps coming towards the door. She opened it and he could see the smoke coming behind her in the kitchen. 

"The turkey meatloaf recipe is a disaster. Peter, I didn't know you'd be here?" May said, her eyes comically wide as she tried to be nonchalant. She knew he wasn't meant to stay the night here, and she was probably very confused. 

"Uh, just looking for my books May. Ned was just about to leave." Peter said, trying to get her to leave before she blew his cover even more. She watched him for a moment, but still looked confused. 

"Okay hon. Just...put on some clothes." she finally said, giving him a weird look that probably meant he had some explaining to do before she closed the door behind her.

"Oh, she doesn’t know?" Ned asked when she was gone. 

"No she knows, only a few people know...I mean, Mr. Stark knows because he made my suit, but that’s it." Peter rambled, unsure of how this was going to go. Ned looked at him in shock. 

"Tony Stark made you that? Are you an Avenger?" Ned asked, excitement all over his face. Peter shrugged. 

"Yeah, basically." he said, which was kind of the truth. He had lived with them for most of his life. Ned just didn't know that. 

"Whoa..." Ned said, his eyes wide. Peter rushed forward to stand in front of him. 

"You can’t tell anybody about this. You gotta keep it a secret." Peter begged, and Ned looked at him in confusion. 

"A secret? Why?" he asked incredulously. Peter's heart started beating faster in panic. How was he supposed to explain this. He paced around for a second before coming to a decision. 

"Because my Dad has enough to worry about right now, and he doesn't need my identity getting out to be another one." Peter said quickly, and Ned just furrowed his eyebrows, mouthing the word Dad. 

"Dad? You mean Ben? Since when did you call him Dad?" Ned asked, sitting down on the bottom bunk. Peter shook his head, sitting in his desk chair and facing Ned. 

"No Ned. My dad. I don't actually live with May and Ben." Peter said, and Ned's face was almost comical at this point. 

"Peter, you're not making sense." Ned said, and now his voice was filled with concern. 

"I know. And it's all really complicated, and I don't really have time to explain it because I really need to get home before I give my Dad a heart attack. So long story short...Tony Stark is my Dad." Peter said, wincing after the words came out of his mouth. He waited a few moments before risking a look at Ned. He just was looking at Peter with his eyes narrowed. 

"Tony Stark? Is your Dad?" he asked eventually, suspicion in his voice. 

"Yes, and I can prove it just not right now. I just need you to promise me not to tell anyone about anything. Not Spider-Man and definitely not about my Dad. Okay? And I'll explain everything tomorrow. Please?" Peter begged, and Ned looked at him for a moment before nodding. 

"Okay, I promise. But you better have pretty good proof and an explanation ready tomorrow." Ned said, standing up and gathering his Legos. 

"I will. Promise." Peter said, and Ned nodded. He walked Ned to the door, and they did their handshake and then Ned finally left. Peter let out a deep breath. 

"What was that all about? You didn't tell me you were staying here tonight." May spoke up, sitting at the table going through take out menus. 

"I'm not. I just forgot some books, and I didn't realize I had told Ned he could come over. Everything is taken care of, and I really got to get back before Dad freaks out." he said, hurrying to grab his books. 

"Oh he's already freaked out. He's called me twice." May said, giving him a disappointed look. Peter sighed. 

"Man. Okay. I gotta go. Love you May! Say hi to Ben for me!" Peter said, rushing out the door. 

"Okay, love you too!" May called behind him. He really needed to get home. 

\---

"Tony. Sit." Natasha called, and her voice sounded very quiet compared to the pounding of his heart. He shook his head several times, breathing erratically. He kept pacing, before a pair of strong arms grabbed his shoulders and steered him to the couch. He looked up and saw that it had been Peter, but Natasha was soon kneeling in front of him, blocking him from sight. 

"Baby, I need you to breathe. Come on, just like we normally do. Follow me." she said softly, her hands coming to rest on either side of his face and her breathing exaggerated for him to follow. He focused on the green of her eyes, and tried his best to focus on breathing. 

"Peter is just fine. He's okay. Keep breathing, you're doing good, love." Natasha said, her thumbs wiping the tears he knew had been on his cheeks away. He repeated those words in his head like a mantra while he breathed. _Peter's okay. Peter's okay. Peter's okay. He's here. Tasha's here. They're okay._

Once he finally got his breathing under control, he dropped his head into the crook of his wife's neck for a few moments, trying to compose himself. When he finally looked up, he saw Peter standing a couple feet away, wringing his hands together like he always did when he was anxious. Tony noted that his face was scrunched up and his breathing was labored. The last thing they needed was another panic attack, so he reached his hands out and motioned for Peter to come closer.

Peter didn't hesitate, and rushed forwards, falling into his hug. He could hear his son mumbling apologies, but he just wrapped his arms tightly around him and started swaying them side to side. 

"I'm sorry." Peter said, a lot louder this time, after a couple minutes. Tony sniffed, then let out a sigh. 

"It's okay, bud. Not you're fault. I was having an off day, today. That's all. Just an off day." Tony said, hoping he was reassuring Peter. The last thing he wanted was for Peter to think it was his fault that Tony was so messed up. Peter pulled out of his hug, and looked up at him, tears sparkling in his eyes. 

"But I made it worse. I know you said to stay low to the ground. But I saw them, and I couldn't just let them do it...and I messed up. I'm so sorry." Peter said again, burying his face back in Tony's shoulder. 

"It's okay, Pete. We all make mistakes. Okay? Just next time, call for help okay? You could have called me, and I would have come help." he said, pushing Peter back a bit, and brushing the hair out of his face. 

"Isn't ATM robbery a little below your pay grade?" Peter asked with sniffle. Tony smirked. 

"Maybe. But Peter Stark isn't. So just call me next time okay?" Tony asked gently, wiping the tears off his son's cheek. Peter nodded. "Good. Let's go eat? I made pasta." he said then, pressing a kiss to Peter's forehead before standing up. Peter jumped up with a cheer, before running ahead of them to the kitchen. 

"You did good." Natasha said quietly. He looked over at her, and she was smiling softly at him. 

"Yeah?" he asked, still nervous he was going to mess something up. She nodded, before taking his hand and leading him to the dining room. 

"Pete. I need you to promise you'll be careful on patrol this week okay?" Tony said a little while later, as they were all sitting around eating dinner. Peter looked up from his fourth helping, eyes confused.

"Okay?" he asked, his mouth still full. 

"Manners." Tony reprimanded before he could stop himself, and Peter shot him a sheepish smile, before closing his mouth and chewing. Tony rolled his eyes fondly before continuing. "I have some business in India that I couldn't get out of. I tried, but Pep threatened to murder me if I did, so I have to go." he said, watching Peter deflate a bit at the news. 

It did warm his heart a bit that his kid still got sad at the thought of him being gone. But another part of him felt guilty that it was probably because of the faint trauma of his dad not coming home a couple times before. 

"Okay. I'll be careful. Promise. How long are you gone?" Peter asked, once he finished his food. 

"Just a couple days. I'll be back in time for Nationals, don't worry." Tony said, and he saw the guilty look on Peter's face. He smirked and turned to his wife and raised his eyebrows. _Your turn_, he mouthed, and she rolled her eyes. 

"Mr. Harrington called May. Told her you weren't going to Nationals?" his wife asked innocently, eyes focused on the pasta she was twisting around her fork. Peter swallowed a bit and looked back and forth between them.

"I just didn't want to be too far away. In case you guys needed me!" Peter defended, and Tony let out a breath. He had known that would be part of it. 

"Pete. You're going. I already had May tell Mr. Harrington. I'm a big boy, I can take care of myself. As for your mother, she's an assassin. You don't need to worry about her." Tony said with a nonchalant shrug. Natasha let out a snort at that one while Peter just let out a nervous laugh, muttering "_what is my life_" under his breath, before nodding. 

"Okay, I'll go." Peter agreed, with an eye roll. 

"I was even thinking about coming. I have some stealth tech I wanted to test out." Tony said, and Peter beamed. 

"Really?" he asked, his face looking so much like the little boy he used to be, that Tony had to force himself not to tear up. 

"Yep. Better get to studying." Tony said, sending his son a wink. Peter nodded, hurrying off to do just that. 

\---

"So you're telling me...that Tony Stark is your dad...and that you only claimed to live with May and Ben as a cover?" Ned asked as they walked to gym class. Peter motioned for him to talk quieter, but nodded. 

"Yeah. That's why my name is Peter Parker on everything. I stay with May and Ben sometimes, like whenever you stayed over. But I'm usually at the Tower, with my Dad." Peter explained, leaving his mom out of it for now. He was sure Ned would figure it out eventually, but he didn't want to risk that getting out. They filed into the gym and everyone let out a collective groan when they saw the old fashioned TV in front of the bleachers. They all sat down and the coach pressed play. 

"Hi. I’m Captain America. Whether you’re in the classroom or on the battlefield..." Steve's voice started playing loud and clear. Peter had to fight down the simultaneous anger and sadness at the sound of his voice. 

"Do you know him too?" Ned leaned over and whispered. Peter clenched his jaw. 

"Yeah, we met. Couple times." Peter said, trying to keep his voice level. Ned looked at him in confusion though, so he was sure he picked up on the tone of his voice. 

"...fitness can be the difference between success or failure." He listened to the voice that used to be a member of his family for a second before turning back to Ned. 

"He was basically my Uncle at one point. But he...hurt my Dad...kinda. So yeah...not his biggest fan anymore." Peter whispered, voice tight. Ned looked at him with sympathy, and patted his shoulder, before they both turned back to the video. 

"Today, my good friend, your gym teacher..." the Steve on the screen is saying, and half the gym laughs when where he is pointing is not where the gym teacher is standing. "...will be conducting the Captain America Fitness Challenge."

"Thank you, Captain. I’m pretty sure this guy’s a war criminal now, but whatever. I have to show these videos. It’s required by the state. Let’s do it." The gym teacher says sarcastically, and blows his whistle. Ned and Peter head over to the sit up station, Ned still looking like he wanted to burst with questions. 

"So why exactly can't we tell anyone about your...alter ego?" Ned asked, his voice still a whisper. Peter looked around quickly, making sure no one was listening. 

"Because Ned. My dad has been...weird, since the whole Accords thing. My...uh Ms. Potts and everyone are really concerned about him. I don't need him to worry about my identity getting out right now okay?" Peter said, focusing on pretending to struggle as he did his sit ups. 

"Not even if it could totally score you a date with Liz?" Ned asked after a couple of minutes. Peter sighed, and his eyes flicked over to the girl in question. He watched her laugh for a second, before shaking his head. 

"No. Ned. Not now. Maybe one day." Peter said, and Ned nodded solemnly. They continued their exercises in silence for the next 20 minutes before Ned looked at him again with excitement. 

"Hey, can I be your guy in the chair?" he asked, and Peter furrowed his brows. 

"What?" he asked, confused. 

"Yeah. You know how there’s a guy with a headset telling the other guy where to go?" Ned explained, waving his hands around. Peter shook his head, shooting his friend a strange look. 

"Like, like if you’re stuck in a burning building, I could tell you where to go. Because there’d be screens around me, and I could, you know, swivel around, and... ‘Cause I could be your guy in the chair." Ned continued, excitement all over his face. Peter rolled his eyes fondly. 

"Ned, I don’t need a guy in the chair." he smiled. 

\---

Tony was walking around outside of the venue when his watch started beeping like crazy. He tapped his earpiece signal JARVIS.

"J?" he asked, forcing down the lump in his throat. 

"Young sirs vitals are questionable and he appears to be losing altitude quickly." JARVIS replied, and Tony had to grab onto the ledge next to him to keep himself upright. He quickly put on his sunglasses that were connected to his suit. 

"Deploy his parachute, and send the closest suit." he forced out, his glasses turning into the HUD of his suit. He got there quickly and saw his son plummet into a lake, tangled in his parachute. He steered the suit into the water, and carried his son over to a jungle gym, and set him on top. 

He hovered by while Peter gained his bearings, taking off his mask and taking a couple deep breaths. 

"Pete? You good bud?" Tony asks, hovering as close as he could. He wanted so badly to be able to be there, but of course he had to be across the globe. Peter looked up at him, squinting his eyes, before nodding. 

"Yeah yeah. I just...there were these people selling weapons, like the bank robbery ones? And then this like bird robot thing showed up. And then he just, he just, like, swooped down like a monster and he picked me up and, uh, he took me up, like, a thousand feet and just dropped me. How’d you find me? Did you put a tracker in my suit or something?" Peter rambled, chin shivering from the cold. Tony's heart panged at not being able to be there. 

"Duh. I even put a heater, here." he said, motioning for JARVIS to turn on the kid's heater. Peter let out a deep sigh as the heater turned on. 

"Whew, that’s better. Thanks, Dad." he said with a smile, rubbing his hands up and down his arms. Once Tony was sure Peter wasn't going to drop dead, he felt his frustration bubble up to the surface. 

"What were you thinking?" he asked, trying his best to keep the anger out of his voice. Peter looked up quickly in alarm. 

"The guy with the wings is obviously the source of the weapons. I gotta take him down." Peter defended, and Tony let out a bitter laugh without thinking. 

"Take him down now, huh? Steady, Crockett, there are people who handle this sort of thing." Tony quipped, his frustration turning quickly to anger. Peter squinted at him. 

"Who? The Avengers?" Peter asked. Tony let out another bitter laugh. 

"No, no, no. This is a little below their pay grade." Tony said, bringing up what he had said the other day. Peter looked at him and let out a defeated sigh. "I meant me. Or the FBI. Not you." Tony said then, and Peter just shrugged. 

"How did you even get here...aren't you supposed to be in India?" Peter asks after a couple minutes of tense silence. Tony shakes his head and opens the empty face-plate. 

"JARVIS alerted me, so he helped me out." Tony said, before closing the face-plate again. 

"Cool. I didn't know you figured out the remote glasses!" Peter gushed, his eyes lighting up. Tony smiled despite himself. 

"I did it the other night, forgot to tell you." Tony said and Peter nodded in understanding. "Look, Pete, forget the flying vulture guy, please." he pleaded. Peter looked up at him, his shoulders lifting as if ready to fight. 

"Why?" he asked, voice sounding slightly annoyed. 

"Why? Because I said so, Peter. I told you to listen to me when I told you to back down. Remember? I'm asking you to back down now. I'll take care of it." Tony said, knowing his voice was desperate. Peter deflated with a sigh. 

"Okay. Just promise me...if I can help you'll let me?" Peter asked, looking up at the suit with a hopeful look on his face. Tony hesitated a bit before nodding. 

"If I need your help, I'll let you know. Just take it slow until I figure things out. Got it?" Tony asked, getting into his car, even though the suit was still hovering in front of Peter.

"Okay." Peter said, standing up. 

"Good. Now go home. Mom will call me if you don't show up soon." Tony said, and Peter rolled his eyes but started swinging towards the Tower. Tony let out a shaky breath, and headed to the airport. He knew Pepper would be mad that he ducked out early, but he really needed to be home. 

\---

"Oh, what is that?" Ned asks, as Peter is studying the glowy thing he found on his way home last night. 

"I don’t know. Some guy tried to vaporize me with it." Peter said, struggling with the tool. 

"Seriously?" Ned asked is shock. Peter rolled his eyes. 

"Yeah." Peter said, his focus on what he was doing. 

"Awesome." Ned breathes, and Peter looks up at him incredulously. 

"I mean, not awesome. Totally uncool of that guy. So scary." Ned tries, and Peter just glares at him, before turning back to the casing. 

"Well, look, I think it’s a power source." Peter continues. 

"Yeah, but it’s connected to all these microprocessors. That’s an inductive charging plate. That’s what I use to charge my toothbrush." Ned says, pointing at part of the machine. Peter nods. 

"Whoever’s making these weapons is obviously combining alien tech with ours." Peter says. 

"That is literally the coolest sentence anyone has ever said. I just want to thank you for letting me be part of your journey into this amazing-" Ned starts rambling, and Peter tunes him out grabbing a hammer to try and get the outside casing off. He's able to do it, but it makes a loud noise. He looks around, but no one seemed to care. 

"I gotta figure out what this thing is and who makes it." Peter says, looking down at the glowing piece. 

"We’ll go to the lab after class and run some tests. Have you told your dad?" Ned asks, and Peter winces. 

"Not yet. I want to see if I can figure something out first. So I can show him I can help. Let’s do it." Peter says. Ned nods, and they do their secret handshake before heading out into the hallway as the bell rings. 

"First, I say we put the glowy thing in the mass spectrometer." Ned starts as they walk towards the lab. 

"First, we gotta come up with a better name than 'glowy thing.'" Peter laughs. 

"You’re right." Ned agrees solemnly. Peter is about to respond when he sees the two men from the other night standing at the end of the hall. 

"Crap." he mutters, moving to hide behind a wall. 

"Come on, come on, come on, come on, come on, come on." he whispers to Ned, who looks around and then awkwardly shuffles toward Peter. 

"High schools creep me out." one of the men is saying, while Peter and Ned peak out at them. 

"They got this funny smell, you know?" Peter hears the voices getting closer and he pulls Ned back behind the wall. 

"Hey, that’s one of the guys that tried to kill me." Peter whispers and Ned's eyes widen. 

"What?" 

"Yeah." 

"We gotta get out of here." Ned breathes, and Peter shakes his head. 

"No, no, no, no, no. I gotta follow them. Maybe they can lead me to the guy that dropped me in the lake." Peter says. 

"Someone dropped you in a lake?"

"Yeah, it was not good." Peter says, watching as the men enter the classroom. Peter makes to follow them. 

"Peter-" Ned whispers. 

"No. Stay there, Ned." he says back, pushing Ned back behind the wall, and heads towards the classroom. 

"Can you imagine what the boss would say if he knew where we were?" he hears one of the men say as he sneaks into the classroom behind them.

"It’s saying there was an energy pulse right here." the man says, as they both peer at a device. Peter slowly reaches into his bag and pulls out his web-shooter. 

"There’s no sign of the weapon. And even if it was here, now it’s gone."

"So are we." the other man agrees, and Peter quickly shoots out a tracker before they exit. Once he knows they are gone, he rushes back out to Ned. 

"What happened?" Ned asks as soon as he gets to him. 

"They left. But I put a tracker on them. To see if they can lead us to the other guy." Peter says, before his phone starts buzzing. He looks down and sees his dad's contact and he looks at Ned in panic.

"I need you to keep the glowy thing safe, until I figure out how to tell my dad about it. Can you do that?" Peter asks Ned, who nods. He shoves the thing into the other boy's hands, before walking away and answering the phone. 

"Hey, Dad. Is everything okay?" Peter asks as he answers the phone. 

"No. I should be asking you that question. My security system picked up on two people that were in the school who shouldn't have been. Are you okay?" Tony asks, his voice frantic. Peter cursed internally. He had forgotten that his dad had rigged the school with security once they decided he would go here. 

"Yeah I'm good. I was just in the lab with Ned. Did...did you see who they were?" he asks.

"No. They only tripped the sensors because they weren't ever scanned as normal personnel at the school, but they were gone before I could investigate." Tony said in defeat. 

"That's really strange." he says, not knowing how to comfort his dad. 

"So you're safe? No Spidey sense or anything going off?" his dad asks then, worry in his voice. 

"Nope. Nothing. I'm good, Dad. Promise." Peter says, and he hears his dad's sigh of relief.

"Well good. Hey, head home straight after school okay? No patrol today...for my sanity." his dad pleaded, and Peter sighed. 

"Okay." he agrees and his dad thanked him before hanging up. He walked back over to Ned. 

"Did you tell him?" Ned asked, as they headed back to the lab. Peter shook his head.

"Nope. I'm going to need you to hold on to that a bit longer." Peter said, and Ned nodded, looking a little too excited to be part of something dangerous. 

  
\---

  
They walked into the meet, and Peter looked around the audience, trying to spot his dad. 

"So you're dad is here? Like in the audience...like Tony Stark is just here?" Ned whispered to him in excitement. Peter rolled his eyes at his friend's excitement. 

"Kinda. He has this new tech that like changes his face into another...the Avengers use them all the time apparently, but he made it better. Or so he says. He sent me what he's supposed to look like. There!" he explained, and then pointed to who he knew was Tony once he spotted him. He waved to his dad, who gave him a wink. 

"Whoa." Ned breathed, before they were forced to get in their places. They ended up winning first place. Peter was ecstatic, because not only had they won, but his dad had actually been there to see it. They all got to go down to meet their families in the audience, and he rushed to his dad, who pulled him into a tight hug. 

"Oh, bug. You did so good up there." his dad said into his hair where his head was resting. Peter beamed before pulling out of the hug and seeing the look of pure pride on his dad's face. 

"I think you did amazing too, baby." a woman said, coming up standing next to Tony. He looked at his dad with raised eyebrows, and he nodded, confirming his suspicions. 

"Mama?" he asked quietly, and the woman nodded. Peter felt a lump form in his throat, before launching into her arms for a hug as well.

"What you don't think I would have missed out and let Tony brag about getting to see you all alone, did you?" his mom whispered, pressing a kiss to his head.

"I'm so happy you guys came!" Peter said, tears in his eyes, as his parents looked down at him with different faces. He knew it was them however, because their eyes were the same.

"And if you're okay missing the tour of the Washington Monument, I already talked to your coach about letting us take you out to lunch?" his dad asked. Peter nodded. 

"That sounds perfect. What cover did you use?" Peter asked then, as they started out the door. He sent a quick wave to Ned before they left.

"I said I was a friend of Ben and May's. I had them sign a form and everything." Tony bragged as they got into the car. It had been a long time since they went out as a family, it almost never happened. Peter was going to enjoy it while it lasted. 

"How responsible of you." Peter remarked, with a laugh. His mom snorted from the passenger seat, and Peter raised his eyebrow. 

"Let me guess. It was Mama's idea?" Peter asked then, and his dad let out a defeated sigh before nodding. 

"Hey but I listened." he tried, and Peter and his mom just laughed. 

"Good for you, baby." his mom replied, taking one of Tony's hands in hers. He just shook his head fondly, before bringing her hand to his lips and kissing it. Peter smiled softly in the back. 

They were almost through with dinner, when both of his parents got an alert on their phones. His dad looked up first, fear in his eyes. 

"There was an explosion at the Washington Monument." he said gravely, and Peter felt his throat tighten.

"Dad. My friends...Ned..." Peter choked out, and his dad nodded. Peter's thoughts were frantic, when he realized something. 

"The glowy thing!" he shouted, and his parents looked at him strangely. 

"Dad. There was a piece of alien tech that fell the other night. I picked it up to study it, but I gave it to Ned to hold, until I could figure out how to tell you about it. Do you...do you think that's what caused the explosion?" Peter asked, panicking. His dad tightened his jaw a couple times, before nodding. 

"Probably. I left my suit at home, and Tash won't be able to do anything from ground level, and even if I called a suit I think it would be too late." He watched as his dad took a measured breath. "Do you have your suit?" Peter gaped for a second before nodding. Tony nodded jerkily, turning to his mom, who nodded. 

"Go. I'll connect to the comms in your suit and help you from here. Go save your friends." Peter only took a second to process before nodding and rushing out of the diner. 

\---

"Tony. He did good." Natasha was telling him, as he paced back and forth in the hotel room. Peter had successfully saved his friends, and they had called parents to bring their kids home. Peter's teacher let them pick Peter up, and he was currently asleep in the adjoining room. Natasha had wanted to go home, but Tony didn't think he could have made that drive, so they settled for a hotel. 

"Tony. Sit down." she said again, her voice stern. Tony nodded absently, and sat down on a chair in the corner of the room. 

"I'm sorry." he muttered, placing his elbows on his knees and dropped his head into his hands. He heard soft footsteps coming closer, and soon his wife was kneeling down in front of him, one of her hands coming up to rub his knee. 

"Hey hey, what's this about?" Natasha asked softly. Tony let out a sigh, and looked up, meeting her green eyes. 

"I don't know. I don't..." he stopped for a second, and she just watched him patiently. "He did so good, Tash. And I'm proud. But another part of me knows ...that was just the beginning." he ended in a whisper. His wife looked at him, gaze calculating. 

"The beginning of what?" she asked gently when he didn't explain. He swallowed the lump in his throat and gave her a sad smile. 

"He saved people today. Avenger level stuff. He's going to want to keep going. This is just the beginning. He won't ever want to stay low to the ground after this." Tony sighed, and his wife nodded.

"You're probably right. But Tony, you're forgetting something." she replied, grabbing both his hands in hers. He looked up at her in confusion. 

"What?" he asked, and she pressed a kiss to his cheek before continuing. 

"He has you." she said simply, and he felt his face screw up in disbelief.

"How's that going to help anything? If anything that makes everything worse." he said, his self hatred making itself known. Natasha gave him a dry look. 

"You're selling yourself short. He has you to help him know how to handle this kind of life. He has you to make his suit and make sure it keeps him safe. I'm not worried, as long as you are there to help him." she said, and he just stared at her. 

"You mean you're not worried about our son swinging around in tights fighting crime?" he asked incredulously. She shook her head in amusement. 

"Not if it's you making the tights. And plus, I can train him to fight. He'll be fine." she said, waving her hand. Tony let out a startled laugh, bringing a smile to Natasha's face. 

"Well when you put it like that." he said and she nodded. 

"He'll be okay." she assured, and he nodded. 

"I hope so." he said, but he felt significantly better. 

\---

Peter was sitting alone on the roof of a building, watching the ferry from afar, when he heard the sound of repulsors coming from behind him. 

"Previously on Peter Screws the Pooch: I tell you to stay away from this. Instead, you don't listen and do the one thing I told you not to do." he turned to see his dad's suit hovering a few feet away. He stayed seated on the edge of the roof, turning his back to his dad. 

"Is everyone okay?" he asked softly. He heard his dad let out a sigh, and the suit opened up. He felt his dad walk over and sit down next to him. 

"Yeah. I'm glad you called me. Even if you waited until the boat literally split in half." Tony said, bumping his shoulder against Peter's. 

"I'm sorry. I messed up." Peter said. Tony nodded. 

"You did." he agreed, and Peter felt a jolt of anger. 

"Those weapons were out there, and I tried to tell you about it. But you didn’t listen. None of this would’ve happened if you had just listened to me." Peter snapped, and turned around to walk a couple feet away. He heard Tony sigh and stand up as well. 

"I did listen, kid. Who do you think called the FBI?" his dad asked from behind him. "Peter, you're too young to be taking on this stuff alone. I was taking care of it." Tony sighed, and Peter could hear the frustration in his voice. 

"I’m fifteen." Peter snapped back, turning around to face his dad. He watched as his dad's face twisted in frustration.

"No, this is where you zip it, all right? The adult is talking. What if somebody had died tonight? Different story, right? ‘Cause that’s on you. And if you died? Pete..." his dad said. His voice has started off angry, but soon dropped into a harsh whisper, grief evident in his voice at what could have happened. Peter felt the fight leave him and he let his shoulders drop. 

"I, I’m sorry." Peter whispered, and Tony took a deep breath and nodded. 

"I know bud. But sorry doesn’t always cut it." his dad said with a bitter shrug. Peter nodded solemnly. 

"I understand. I just wanted to be like you." Peter whispered, and a pained look flashed on his dad's face. 

"And I want you to be better." his dad replied, voice tight. "I want you to take a break from the suit for a couple days...okay?" he continued after swallowing a couple times. Peter shook his head. 

"Wait. Dad, no." he pleaded. "You don’t understand. I’m nothing without this suit." he begged. Tony let out a deep sigh, his right hand coming up to squeeze his left wrist.

"If you’re nothing without this suit, then you shouldn’t have it. It's just a couple days, Pete." his dad replied, and Peter could hear the pleading tone in his voice. He didn't know why his dad was acting so strange, but he nodded. 

"Okay." he agreed. His dad let out a sigh of relief, and nodded too. 

"Okay. Let's head home."

  
\---

She watched as her boys shuffled into the penthouse after the ferry incident. Peter looked devastated, and made a beeline for his room the second they got out of the elevator. Natasha furrowed her eyebrows as Tony walked in, his eyes unseeing, and sat down on the couch with a shaky sigh. She sat there silently, wondering if he even knew she was there, when he suddenly looked up and locked eyes with her. 

"Can you...uh go make sure he's okay?" he asked, voice rough, his arm waving in the direction of Peter's room. Natasha crossed her arms. 

"What happened?" she asked, and he just shrugged. 

"I let myself get frustrated. He probably hates me. Just...uh make sure he's not too upset...please?" he asked, voice cracking several times, and she could see the tears building up in his eyes. 

"What about you? What do you need?" she asked, walking a little closer. He stood up suddenly, and clenched his fists. 

"Just time...to uh...think. Yeah." he said, nodding to himself, and heading to the elevator. She knew he was going to bury himself in the workshop, but she decided she would deal with that later, and headed to Peter's room. 

When she walked in, her son was sitting on the edge of his bed, staring down at his fidgeting hands. She could see the tension in his shoulders, and could see his jaw working, and she knew he was trying not to cry.

"Hey, bug." she said softly, coming to sit next to him. He nodded his head in greeting, before settling it on her shoulder as she wrapped her arms around him in a hug. 

"Dad thinks you hate him...now do you want to tell me if he's exaggerating or did something really bad happen?" she asked softly, rubbing her hand up and down his back, before he sniffed and pulled away. His face was one of utter confusion.

"I mean...we had a fight? I guess you could call it, bu-but why would he think that?" Peter asked incredulously, his stutter making itself known. 

"He said he got frustrated, which I'm assuming means he yelled at you?" she asked, and Peter made a face. 

"I wouldn't say yelled, but I could tell he wasn't happy with me." Peter said slowly, his face still showing his confusion. 

"Ahh. Well. You were a pretty good kid growing up, but whenever you broke the rules, did you ever notice who it was that disciplined you?" she asked her son, whose face scrunched up in thought. 

"You? I only remember you ever getting mad at me for something..." Peter trailed off. 

"Exactly. Your dad always asked me to be the bad guy when you got in trouble." Natasha confirmed. Peter scrunched his eyebrows. 

"What? Why? Didn't that bother you?" Peter asked. 

"No. Because I knew why he wanted me to do it." she answered. Peter looked at her. 

"It has something to do with Howard doesn't it?" Peter asked quietly. She nodded. 

"I told you he was terrified to turn into Howard. So he never wanted to yell at you, he was always so scared he would take it too far. He always tried to talk to you calmly when you did something wrong, and that's usually what happened. But when you did something that made him mad, or frustrated, he always made me take care of it. He didn't want to risk doing to you what Howard did to him." Natasha explained. Peter nodded. 

"He knows though...that I don't hate him right? That I know he would never do anything like that?" Peter asked after a couple moments. Natasha shrugged. 

"I don't know. I think normally he would...but with everything that happened with Steve, he's having a hard time trusting anyone, let alone himself." she said. Peter hummed thoughtfully. 

"So that's why he was acting a bit weird, when we were fighting." Peter mused, and Natasha furrowed her brows in confusion. 

"What do you mean weird?" she asked, worried. Peter shrugged. 

"He kept like going from being mad to sad really fast. Then he kept rubbing his arm." Peter answered. And she narrowed her eyes. 

"Which arm?" she asked. 

"The left...I think. Why?" Peter asked. She shook her head. 

"No reason. You know he was never really mad at you right? You just scared him. He gets that way when he's scared. Like he's not sure whether to be worried or mad." she explained, and Peters eyes lit up in understanding. 

"That makes sense. So how do I...how do I make sure he knows I don't hate him?" Natasha smiled at her son's compassion. 

"Give me an hour with him, and then go down to the lab and talk it through." she said, and he nodded. She stood up, and ruffled his hair. 

"And take a shower. You smell. You smell like garbage." she added, scrunching her nose. 

"I know." Peter laughed. She smiled, and left the room. 

  
\---

"Now. I told Peter to come down here. You guys are going to talk through everything okay?" Natasha asked him, as she walked to the door. He nodded. 

"Yes ma'am." he said, playing with a screwdriver he had found on his desk. His wife nodded in approval and left. Not even five minutes later was there a tentative knock at the door. 

"Sir, young sir is requesting entry." JARVIS spoke up. Tony shook his head fondly. 

"Let him in, J." he said. He watched as Peter entered the room, looking timid. 

"You know you have full access to the lab right?" Tony asked him after he had fully entered the room. Peter blushed a bit and shrugged. 

"It felt weird to just walk in." he said, and Tony nodded. 

"You don't hate me right?" Tony asked then, after a minute of awkward silence. He hated how vulnerable he sounded, but Natasha told him to be honest, so he was giving it a shot. Peter looked at him, a mild offended look on his face. 

"Of course not." Peter said, voice showing how stupid he found Tony's question. 

"Even though I yelled at you?" Tony asked then, just to be sure. Peter rolled his eyes, and came to sit on the chair across from him. 

"You're my dad. You're supposed to yell at me sometimes. Do I enjoy it? No. But I messed up, you told me I did, that's how the whole parent-son thing works." Peter said matter of factly. Tony let out a huff. 

"Is that so?" he asked, looking down at the screwdriver in his hands. 

"Yep. I would know. I've had pretty great parental figures." Peter said, and Tony looked up at him to see a smug smile on his face. 

"Pete..." he argued, but his son held up his hand, so he stopped short. 

"No. I know you didn't have a great dad. But I do. And yes you're going to yell at me when I'm stupid, because that's how I learn. But you've never, not once, ever made me think that you were _ever_ going to hurt me." Peter said strongly, and Tony deflated like his strings were cut. 

"Promise?" Tony asked, voice quiet. Peter nodded fiercely. 

"Promise. I have never worried about that. Ever. You have been nothing but loving to me since the day I was born. Pepper and Mom can attest to the parts I don't remember...being a baby and all." Peter said with a smile, and Tony nodded. 

"Thanks, bug. For dealing with my issues." Tony said, and Peter looked like he wanted to protest, but it was Tony's turn to hold up his hand. "No listen. I know I'm not the most stable person, and you've had to put up with it. And I'm sorry for that. But I'm going to do my best to help you, and to listen to you. Okay?" 

"Sounds good to me." Peter agreed with a smile. Tony nodded, before a beep interrupted them. 

"What's that for?" Peter asked, and Tony spun around to bring up the alert. 

"There's a tip from that bug you planted on those arms dealers." Tony muttered, reading over the info. 

"What bug?" Peter tried innocently. Tony rolled his eyes and sent a look over his shoulder. 

"Don't start. It says they are planning to rob my plane tonight." Tony said, quickly signalling for JARVIS to prepare his suit. There was a sound made from behind him and he turned to Peter. 

"What plane?" he asked, looking between the info and Tony. Tony felt a decision make itself known in his mind and he nodded to himself. 

"I sent some of the Avenger's stuff to the compound, where we are going to be based out of from now on. That plane. It can't end up in the wrong hands. You going to help?" Tony asked, and Peter gaped at him for a minute before nodding. 

"Then get your suit. We have a plane to catch." Tony said, and Peter nodded before rushing off. 

\---

"And what are you going to do if he doesn't want to be a part of the Avengers?" Natasha asked him with a raised eyebrow. Tony laughed. 

"He's been practically begging since he got bit. What do you mean what if he doesn't want to?" Tony asked her incredulously. Natasha shook her head, but nodded. 

"Is everything set?" she asked instead. Tony nodded. 

"Yep. Pep has all our usual press conference people in there, waiting for some big announcement from Tony Stark." he replied with a smirk. His wife just rolled her eyes. Then they heard footsteps approach them, they both turned to see Happy and Peter walking towards them. 

"Thanks Hap." Tony said, giving him a pat on the shoulder. The older man just grumbled like he didn't enjoy toting Peter around after all these years. 

"Yeah, thanks Uncle Happy!" Peter said with a smile. Happy waved them off, and walked away. Once he was gone, Peter turned to them. 

"So what's this all about?" Peter asked curiously, looking around at the empty hallway. 

"We have some reporters in the next room. I thought we'd announce Spider-Man as the newest member of the Avengers." Tony answered, smiling when Peter's jaw dropped. He was speechless for a second, before he furrowed his eyebrows. 

"And if I say no?" he asked quietly, looking down at his hands. Now it was Tony's turn being speechless, and Natasha sent him a smug look. 

"It would depend on why you're saying no." she answered for him. Peter nodded.

"Well. After all the stuff. The monument, the ferry, the plane. I don't think I'm ready to do this full time yet." Peter admitted, sounding shy. He looked up at Tony with a sad look. 

"Is...is that okay?" he asked quietly when Tony didn't say anything. That snapped Tony out of his thoughts, and he walked over and pulled his son into a hug. 

"Of course, bug. That's totally okay. You can just be...the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man until you're ready, yeah?" he said softly, pressing a kiss to the crown of his head. Peter nodded gratefully. 

"Yeah. Um...so what are you going to do about the reporters?" Peter asked. Tony swore under his breath. 

"Yeah they are ready for some big announcement. Pepper might kill me if we don't give them one." Tony replied, running a hand through his perfectly gelled hair, making it stick up. Natasha let out a sigh, and walked over to fix it. 

"Why don't we tell them about us?" she asked, her attention completely on fixing his hair. Tony's eyes widened, and he looked over to Peter, who had a similar look of shock. 

"Why?" was all he could choke out, and his wife finally looked down at him with a smile. 

"Why not? It's been years since I was an undercover agent, the whole world knows my name and face now. Why not finally admit to it?" she asked, her lips tipped up in a smirk. Tony was at a loss of words for a minute. 

"Are-are you sure?" he asked, as Pepper came out to signal it was almost time. Natasha nodded, squeezing his hand. 

"Okay then. Let's go announce our marriage on national TV. Cool. Peter's still a secret right?" Tony said, adjusting his tie, before Natasha swatted his hand to get him to stop. 

"Of course. It's going to be fine. Let's go." she said, grabbing his hand and pulling him towards the door. 

"Good luck!" he heard Peter call from behind them, and soon they were in front of what seemed like a million flashing lights. 

\---

  
IRON-SPIDER FAMILY WILL RETURN

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did you think? Please leave a comment!!
> 
> Also...everyone seemed to love the flashback I did in the the last chapter. Would a series of like flashback scenes be interesting to anyone?
> 
> Please leave a comment! They keep me going!
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	14. Post-Credit Scene

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's a short one but here you go ;)

"Most of the reactions are just the women mourning the fact that they now have no chance with you." Peter mused, scrolling through Twitter for the reactions to his now public marriage. He snorted. 

"Like any of them had a chance anyway. I was with Mary before her, so the playboy thing really was just an act." Tony said, and Peter rolled his eyes fondly. 

"It better have been just an act." Natasha said, coming in from the kitchen, handing him a cup of coffee. 

"Thanks, love." he said, and she gave him a kiss, before settling down next to him to listen to Peter's findings. 

"Sir, you have visitors on the landing deck." JARVIS' voice came suddenly. Tony froze in his seat. 

"Visitors? On the landing deck? Great. Peter go to your room. Don't give me that look. I know you can help, but I need to evaluate the threat first. Go." Tony ordered, and Peter reluctantly flipped out of the room. He stood up and called his suit, it wrapping around his body. He looked at his wife, who had her guns out. They nodded to each other, before heading to the landing deck. 

His HUD picked up on three heat signatures standing outside what looked to be a spaceship, with dozens of other heat signatures inside. Tony motioned for Natasha to stay behind him, and they moved forward. When the three figures finally came into focus, Tony felt his blood run cold. 

"Bruce?" he choked out. The smallest of the three waved lamely. 

"Hey, Tony. Nat." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DUN DUN DUUUUUUNNNN
> 
> Leave a comment!


	15. Infinity War

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is. 
> 
> I know it's short. This movie was mostly action, and I don't write that well and I wanted my focus to be on them not the fighting so...I hope it's okay. And I had to get this done, so I could get to Endgame. I am so excited for what I have planned for Endgame, so I hope it will be worth the wait, and the short chapter for this one. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy! Or at least tolerate it!

"So he's coming here?" Tony asks, his hands shaking slightly so he clenches his fist. Peter was sitting next to him, bouncing his knees and biting his lip, eyes flitting between everyone in the room. Natasha was sitting next to him, her hand on his knee. 

"We think so. He has two stones, and there's two of them on earth." Bruce replied. Tony furrowed his eyebrows. 

"Two?" he asked. Thor nodded his head with a side glance to Loki, who seemed to look a bit guilty. 

"Yes. The mind stone, which is with the Vision. And then I am lead to believe the time stone is in the hands of a sorcerer I met on earth a short time ago." Thor said solemnly. 

"Wait...sorcerer? You mean Strange?" Tony asked, and Thor furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, and he could feel Natasha's eyes on him. 

"I believe so. You know him?" Thor asked. Tony nodded, glancing at Natasha with a shrug.

"I've been keeping up to date with all the people with abilities close by, in case something happened..." Tony trailed off and Natasha nodded in understanding. 

"Yes, so one's with Vision and the other is with this Strange guy. So we need a plan." Bruce said urgently, which worried Tony. Bruce seemed very shaken up by what they had gone through in space. 

"Okay, well first. I have some land in Norway. You mentioned that's where you found your dad. Do you have someone who could take your people there, and keep them safe?" Tony asked then, standing up and starting to pace. Thor smiled at him, while Loki looked at him in surprise. 

"Yes, we can send them with Valkyrie, she'll watch over them. I'll go tell her now?" Thor said with a nod, standing up. Tony nodded. 

"Yeah, JARVIS will give you the coordinates. Once they are safe, then we can go about thinking of a plan." Tony said, and Thor nodded gratefully. He and Loki left the room, leaving Bruce behind. 

"Where is everyone?" Bruce asked, finally asking the question Tony was dreading. 

"They...uh. It's complicated." Tony spit out, his breath catching in his throat. He could feel everyone's eyes on him, so he turned to see Bruce looking at him in utter confusion, while Peter and Natasha looked at him with concern. Natasha narrowed her eyes a bit, before turning to Bruce. 

"Clint's with his family. Sam, Wanda, Vision, and Rhodey are at the compound." she answered calmly. Bruce stared at her for a moment, before looking between her and Tony. 

"And Steve?" he asked. Natasha gave him a grim smile. 

"He's on the run. We don't know where he is." she said, causing Bruce to splutter. 

"On the run? Captain America? Is on the run?" he asked in shock, and Tony felt himself let out a bitter laugh. 

"Not now, Tony. Yes. There was a legal disagreement, and Steve ended up on the wrong side. I can explain more later." Natasha said, placing her hand on his arm. He nodded, taking a deep breath. Bruce sent him a concerned look, but then nodded.

"We need to call him." Bruce said, and Tony froze. "No matter what happened between you guys, we are gonna need all the help we can get." And that really knocked the breath out of his lungs. He staggered back, and fell ungracefully onto the couch. He kept his eyes trained on the ground, trying to force air into his lungs. 

"Okay, Bruce come with me. We can try and get a hold of Steve. Peter, baby, stay with your dad." he heard his wife's voice say. He heard them leave, and felt Peter sit down next to him. His son just sat there and rubbed his back silently, letting him get a hold of his breathing. When he finally did he looked up.

"You okay?" Peter asked him softly. He nodded. 

"Yeah, I don't know why I reacted like that. Is your mom calling...Cap?" Tony bit out, and Peter winced, before nodding. 

"Okay. Then we should probably go start thinking of a plan." he said, and Peter gave him a reluctant look but nodded.

\---

  
"You going to be able to handle this?" Natasha asked, as they headed to the conference room in the compound where everyone was waiting. She turned her head to observe her husband as they walked. He seemed paler than usual, and his breathing was a little too fast for her liking. 

"I gotta be. So I will be." Tony answered, determination in his voice. He looked at her as they reached the doors, and gave her a grim nod, before opening the door. They walked in the room, and it seemed like everyone was already discussing plans. She kept close to Tony as he navigated over to Rhodey. 

"So we gotta assume they're coming back, right?" Rhodey asked, arms crossed. He sent them both a nod as they came to stand next to him. 

"And they can clearly find us." Wanda replied, her focus on Vision. Natasha could see Tony suppress a flinch at the witch's presence. 

"We need all hands on deck. Where's Clint?" Bruce spoke up from across the room, still seemingly jumpy. 

"After the whole Accords situation, he bowed out. It was too tough on his family. I'd rather him stay out of it, if it means keeping them safe." Natasha replied curtly, and luckily nobody argued. 

"Okay, look… Thanos has the biggest army in the universe. And he is not gonna stop until he... he gets...Vision's Stone." Bruce said after a moment, panic in his voice. Thor nodded his agreement, and the tension in the room amplified. She could see Tony clenching his left wrist next to her. 

"Well then, we have to protect it." she said simply, trying to diffuse the tension, both for the team's sake and Tony's. Vision stepped forward, a contemplative look on his face. 

"No, we have to destroy it. I've been giving a good deal of thought to this entity in my head, about its nature. But also, its composition. I think if it were exposed to a sufficiently powerful energy source, something, very similar to its own signature, perhaps… its molecular integrity could fail." Vision said, looking at Wanda meaningfully. 

"And you, with it. We're not having this conversation." Wanda snapped, walking away, turning her back to the group. 

"Eliminating the stone is the only way to be certain that Thanos can't get it." Vision replied, and Natasha knew that was the most logical course of action. But she could tell by the pinched look on Steve's face that he would never stand for it. Not if it meant losing a life. 

"That's too high a price." Wanda said, her voice breaking. She rose her eyebrow, and noticed the look in Wanda's eyes. She exchanged looks with Tony, who's face showed his realization. She watched as Vision took Wanda's face in his hands. 

"Only you have the power to pay it." he said gently, and Wanda pulled away in distress. "Thanos threatens half the Universe. One life cannot stand in the way of defeating him." Vision continued anyway, despite his girlfriend's discomfort. 

"But it should." Steve said lowly, looking up at them. "We don't trade lives, Vision." he said with finality, and Natasha had to keep from rolling her eyes. Vision shook his head in Steve's direction. 

"Captain, 70 years ago, you laid down your life to save how many millions of people. Tell me, why is this any different?" Vision argued, and she tilted her head, curious of Steve's reaction. But Steve didn't get a chance to speak, because Bruce was already stepping forward. 

"Because you might have a choice. Your mind is made up of a complex construct of overlays. Tony's A.I., Ultron, Tony, me, the Stone. All of them mixed together. All of them learning from one another." he said, and Tony straightened in his seat at the words, and she could tell his mind was moving a mile a minute. 

"You're saying Vision isn't just the stone?" Wanda asked, a hint of hope in her voice. 

"I'm saying that if we take out the stone, there's still a whole lot of Vision left. Perhaps the best parts." Bruce said, looking at Tony. 

"Can we do that?" Natasha asked, turning her attention to her husband. He grabbed her hand and fiddled with it for a moment before looking up. 

"Not here, I don't have the kind of tech for that. But I know a place that might." Tony said, looking up from her hand. 

"Where would that be?" Wanda asked, and Tony let out a sigh. 

"Wakanda." Tony said, and Steve looked up. 

"That's where Bucky is. They helped get rid of his triggers. I'm sure they could help with this too." Steve said, voice bright. Tony's eyes hardened a bit, but he nodded. 

"Yes, they can. So we need a plan. Some of us need to go to Wakanda. Stay with Vision, in case Thanos gets here before we can get the stone out. And then some of us...need to stay here. Find Strange, and convince him to let us help him protect the stone. Then maybe we could meet in Wakanda, and destroy them before he gets here." Tony said eyes trained on her hand in his. 

"Okay. Who's going where?" Steve asked, looking to Tony, which surprised her. Tony seemed shocked too for a minute, before taking a deep breath. 

"I'll stay here with Thor and Loki, we will go talk to the wizards and get their help, and hopefully get him to destroy that stone. The rest of you go to Wakanda." Tony said, and Natasha opened her mouth to protest, when he shook his head. 

"Tasha. We need all hands on deck here. If he shows up, that's where he will go, so everyone needs to be there. If we can get the wizard to agree to destroy the stone, we will be right behind you. It's what makes sense." Tony said quietly. She studied his face for a moment, and his eyes were pleading, so she nodded. 

"As long as you come right to Wakanda when you're done with Strange." she said, and he nodded. She looked around at the others who had already started making plans for departure. 

"What about Peter?" she whispered to him. He turned to her, and she could sense the tension in his shoulders increase. 

"He's going to stay out of it. If I have anything to say about it, he's going to stay safe." Tony whispered back, and she nodded. 

"Good." she said with a nod. She waited a second, before standing up and joining the planning. 

\---

"Wow you're a seriously loyal piece of outerwear, aren't you?" he muttered, looking at the cape that followed him onto the spaceship. He hadn't really expected the whole alien invasion thing, and he knew Natasha was going to be worried sick when she figured out he was headed to outer space. He suddenly heard movement behind him, so he whirled around. 

"Yeah, uh, speaking of loyalty..." Peter's voice trailed off, and Tony felt his heart constrict in his chest. He swallowed down the panic and stared at his son incredulously. 

"What the-" he choked out, and Peter held his hands up cautiously as he moved forward. 

"I know what you're gonna say." his son spoke, and that broke Tony out of his reverie. He shook his head frantically. 

"You should not be here." he said firmly, hands shaking. Peter grimaced.

"I was gonna go home-" Peter started and Tony held up his shaking hand to stop him. 

"I don't wanna hear it. Peter what were you thinking? What..." Tony choked out, voice starting to shake. Peter looked at him desperately. 

"I just thought about you on the way, and I didn't want you to be alone. I wanted to help protect you." Peter pleaded. 

"Peter. That's not how it works. I'm the Dad. I protect you. And I can't do that when you're stowing away on an ALIEN SPACESHIP, PETER!" Tony felt himself start shouting, and he could see Peter deflate a little with a shrug. 

"We're supposed to protect each other." he whispered, and Tony felt himself deflate as well. He took a deep breath to quell the anxiety bubbling just under the surface. He couldn't afford to breakdown, not when they were on an alien spaceship headed who knows where. 

"Come on. We got a situation." he says instead, leading Peter to show him the wizard. "See him down there? He's in trouble. What's your plan?" he asked, and Peter looked at him in shock, before nodding. 

"Um. Okay, okay... uh..." he stuttered before nodding again. "Okay. Did you ever see this really old movie, Aliens?" 

\---

"Natasha. You're going to want to sit down." Bruce's voice was shaky over the phone, and Natasha felt her blood run cold. 

"Why. Bruce. What happened?" Natasha asked, her voice clipped. 

"A spaceship showed up in New York. And these...aliens, uh Thanos' children? I guess, they showed up to take the stone from Strange. And Tony tried to stop them, and they ended up getting a hold of Strange, and took off with him. Tony followed." Bruce said. Natasha felt her breath catch in her throat. 

"Why? Why did he follow?" she asked, not really expecting an answer. 

"Well, I think it was because a new hero, one I've never met, got beamed up. He followed after him, and they both went up with the ship." Bruce said, and she felt her heart drop.

"A new hero? Who Bruce?" she asked, her eyes closed. She could feel everyone's eyes on her, Steve's especially. 

"I don't know. He was uh...wearing red and blue. He swung around on some kind of string or something. Tony seemed to know him." Bruce said, and Natasha let out a broken sob, the phone dropping from her hand. Steve rushed over and knelt beside her, a questioning look on his face. She took a deep breath and grabbed the phone back. 

"Thank you, Bruce." she responded, her voice sounding far away, even to her, before hanging up. 

"Nat?" Steve asked gently. She let out a shaky breath and looked up. Steve looked worried, and everybody else seemed nervous, seeing as she was who she was and usually never let people see her emotions. But she could feel the tears streaming down her face, and her breaths were hitching in her throat. 

"Tony. Uh, he got taken up with the space ship that showed up in New York." Natasha choked out, and Steve nodded gently rubbing her back. 

"Okay. Nat, he can take care of himself, I'm sure he'll be okay. He can make sure they don't get the Time Stone." Steve said, his voice comforting. She shook her head frantically. 

"You don't understand. He was taken, but he wasn't the only one. He was following someone up there, someone other than Strange." she said hysterically. The tears coming faster. She stood up and started pacing, and cursing herself in Russian. She never let herself break, so why was she letting herself now? She shook her hands out, and let out a deep breath. She knew why. Because this time, it was Peter's life at stake. And she wasn't ready to face that. 

"Who else would he have followed up, Nat?" Rhodey asked, his voice hard, and she knew he already had his answer. She nodded at him, and he threw the glass cup he was holding with a curse. She watched as it shattered on the opposite wall. 

"Peter." she said with defeat, and she could see the devastation flash across everyone else's faces too. 

"Son of a bitch." she heard Steve curse.

\---

"You have my respect, Stark. When I'm done, half of humanity will still be alive. I hope they remember you." Thanos was standing in front of him, brandishing the gauntlet. And Tony wanted to fight, but the pain in his side was growing by the minute, and he could taste the blood in his mouth. He didn't want to die, but if he had to, at least it was keeping Peter safe, keeping his world safe. 

"Stop!" he hears Stephen yell, and he curses softly. "Spare his life... and I will give you the stone." he continues, and Tony struggles to turn his head to the man. 

"No tricks." Thanos demands, and he turns just in time to see Stephen shake his head in agreement. Tony shakes his head. 

"Don't!" he chokes out, looking at the other man. Stephen ignores him, and lifts his shaking hands, conjuring the Time Stone. Tony felt panic bubble up in his throat, and he tried so hard to get up, but he couldn't. He watches as Thanos takes to stone and puts it in the gauntlet. 

"One to go." he says with a creepy smile, before disappearing. Tony let out a groan. 

"Where is he?!" Peter Quill yells as he shows up, guns raised. Tony just shakes his head, taking out the blade embedded in his side, using his nano-tech to stitch up the wound. 

"Did we just lose?" the man asks when no one answers, voice worried. Tony looks over to Strange, feeling betrayed. 

"Why would you do that?" he asks, his voice breaking. Stephen just looks at him with a look that seems to say a million things, none of which Tony can interpret. 

"We're in the Endgame now." he says, voice grave. 

"Dad!" he hears a shout, and soon Peter is at his side, helping him stand up. 

"Are you okay?" Peter asks him, voice quiet. 

"I will be." Tony promises, trying to sound reassuring. Peter just nods shakily, helping to support Tony as they stood there. 

"What are we supposed to do now?" Quill asks, and Tony turns to Strange with his eyebrows raised, when the bug girl speaks up suddenly. 

"Something's... happening." she whispers, and soon she's gone. Tony blanches, eyes widening at the sudden disappearance. 

"Quill?" the blue man asks, and they all turn to watch him turn to ash as well, the remains floating away in the air. Quill turns to them, panic in his eyes. And Tony can tell he was going to be next. 

"Steady, Quill." Tony chokes out, taking a small step forward, away from his son. 

"Oh, man." the man says, before he too is gone. 

"Tony, there was no other way." Strange says, and Tony turns just in time to see his body get swept away as well. He feels his panic rising, not knowing what to do, when he hears his name being called. And his heart breaks. 

"Dad." his son chokes out, and he whips around to see the pained look on his sons face. He shakes his head frantically, pulling his son into his arms. "I don't feel so good..." he continues, and Tony feels his heart constrict in his chest, and a sob makes it's way out of his mouth. He knew there were tears falling down his face, but he tried his best to look calm, even though he knew he was failing. 

"You're okay, baby. You'll be okay, I promise. It's okay, baby." Tony said, grabbing his sons shoulders, his voice hitching. Peter stumbles in his arms as his legs give out under him, and they are soon both on the ground, his sons head cradled in his hand. 

"I don't know what's -- I don't know what's happening. I don't-" Peter chokes, and Tony shushes him, brushing his hair out of his eyes like he always did. Peter kept rambling, his voice shaking, tears running down his face. "I don't wanna go, I don't wanna go, Dad, please. Please, I don't wanna go. I don't wanna go..." Peter says, and Tony can see the ashes starting to fly away from his sons form. He chokes back a sob, and brushes a kiss onto his son's forehead. 

"I love you, bug. I--I love you so much, baby." he whispers, as Peter's eyes widen and more ash flies from him.

"I'm sorry." he hears his son, his baby, whisper, before he's gone. Tony falls forward, sobs wracking his body. 

"He did it." the blue girl speaks from behind him, and Tony screams out his next sob, feeling like his world just fell apart. 

  
\---

Natasha watches as dust flies up into the air at an alarming rate. She runs over to see Steve kneeling next to a pile of what looked like ashes.

"What is this? What the hell is happening?" Rhodey demands from beside her, and she falls to her knees. 

"Oh, God." Steve chokes out, and she knows. He won. It was over. And they lost.

\---

BLACK WIDOW WILL RETURN

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry. I had to. I promise the Endgame chapter will be better. I know it was super short, but I'm not good with action scenes, and this movie is mostly action so...also I wanted to just focus on them and their family more than the fighting. I hope that's okay.
> 
> Just to reassure you, I hated Endgame. I felt like they crapped all over everyone's character development, and then ran it over with a semi truck. So my version, is gonna be different. If that helps the pain of this chapter at all....
> 
> Leave a comment! Thanks for all of your support! I can't believe I almost have 12,000 hits on this story...that's nuts. Thank you!


	16. Post Credit Scene

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Endgame is coming. And I have so many ideas for it, it's not even funny. Hopefully that will make up for the short Infinity War chapter.

Natasha is sitting in a chair, somewhere in the compound. She didn't know how she got there, and when they got back from Wakanda. She had shut down the moment she realized they lost. Because if Thanos won, then Tony was most likely gone too, and Peter with him. 

"Nat? You're phone is ringing. It's Clint." a soft voice, she suspects belongs to Bruce, speaks up from beside her. She looks over slowly, taking the phone from the man and answering it. 

"Clint?" she asks, her voice coming out flat and emotionless. 

"They're gone, Nat. All of them. Laura, Cooper, Lila...Nate. All gone." came Clint's choked reply. She tried to stir up some emotion from hearing that more of her family was gone, but she couldn't. Her world was already gone. 

"Tony and Peter are gone." she said back after a few moments of listening to Clint sob. She heard him let out a breath. 

"Oh, Nat. Where are you?" he asked then, his voice thick. 

"Compound." she answered robotically. 

"I'll be there soon, Nat. Okay? Don't do anything crazy until I get there. Promise me?" Clint's voice asked, desperate. She felt herself nodding. 

"Okay." she whispered, before the line went dead, and she went back to staring at the same wall.

HAWK-EYE WILL RETURN 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys for all of your support!
> 
> Let me know what you think!!
> 
> Endgame chapter is coming soon!


	17. Avengers: Endgame

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Umm...here we are. This has been a long time coming and I can't believe I have actually reached it. 
> 
> Thank you guys so much for all of your support, and just reading this in general. I can't believe how popular it got. 
> 
> I hope you like what I did with Endgame, and please leave a comment on what you think. 
> 
> And please read the author's note at the end. 
> 
> Thank you for reading!! Enjoy!

"And... you've won. Congratulations." Tony says with a smile, reaching his hand out to Nebula. "Fair game. Good Sport. Have fun?" he asks as she shakes his hand. She nods once. 

"It was fun." she says, her voice monotone as always, but he could see a hint of a smile on her face. He nods, and leans back. 

"Good." he says, she looks at him for a moment, before continuing. 

"This game. Are you the inventor of it?" she asks curiously. Tony lets out a small laugh.

"No. I don't know who invented it. But I learned it from my wife. We used to play it when we got bored at my parents' parties. Even played it at a debriefing once, really pissed Steve off, which was a bonus at the time." Tony mused, while Nebula listened patiently.

"You are married?" she asks, not commenting on the game. Tony nodded, rubbing his hand down his face before fiddling with his wedding ring. He had finally gotten to wear it in public after they announced their marriage. And now...

"Yeah. I am..or was. I don't know if she..." Tony trailed off, and Nebula nodded. 

"You should eat. I'll get you something." she said, standing up and walking to the back of the ship. He let out a sigh and walked over to his helmet, that had been laying on the floor. 

"I guess now's a good time as any to record my last message...geez." Tony muttered to himself as he messed with the communications in the helmet. 

"This thing on?"

\---

"You think this Carol Danvers will be able to help us undo what he did?" Clint asks, and Natasha looks up from her bowl of soup to look at him. He had shown up a couple days ago, and has now made it his personal mission to make sure she ate and as he put it "keep living". She shrugs her shoulders.

"I'm not so sure there is any way to reverse it." she says quietly, and she can see the pain in his eyes as she says it. She offers him an apologetic smile, and he just lets out a sigh.

"I know it all seems pretty hopeless now Nat. But...let's wait and see if there is any hope left before we completely give up?" Clint says, crouching to meet her eyes. She swallows the lump that appears in her throat and nods. 

"Okay." she says, and he looks relived. 

"Mrs. Stark. A transmission has just appeared on the Stark Secure Server." JARVIS' voice speaks up suddenly, and Natasha jumps out of her seat. 

"What time was the transmission recorded, JARVIS?" she asked frantically, as Clint watched on in concern. 

"I am unable to find that information, but the signal does indicate the transmission is not from Earth." JARVIS continued, and Natasha turned her head to look at Clint.

"You think that's Tony?" Clint asks softly. She shakes her head. 

"It has to be, it's his secure server. Unless someone up there got access to his suit. In which case, we could have another threat on our hands." Natasha said, pulling up the server, and looking at the file.

"Should I get the team?" Clint asked, coming to stand next to her. 

"Not yet." she says, before clicking on the file. A video feed pulls up and she lets out a strangled gasp at who is on the other end. Tears fill her eyes as she sees her husband, who is obviously very malnourished, settle into the frame. 

"This thing on?" her husband's voice asks, and Natasha falls backward into her seat at the voice. 

"Hey, Natasha...Nat. If you find this recording, don't post it on social media. It's gonna be a real tear-jerker." she huffs out a broken laugh, rolling her eyes. "I don't know if you're ever going to see these. I don't even know if you're...if you're still...Oh god, I hope so. Today is day 21, uh 22. You know, if it wasn't for the existential terror of staring into a void of space, I'd say I'm feeling better today. The infection's run its course, thanks to the blue meanie back there." Tony says, and Natasha's eyes roam over his figure, to see bandages on his left side. She runs her fingers through her hair, and tries to stop the flow of tears. She wasn't sure who this 'blue meanie' he was referring to was, but he still hadn't mentioned Peter, and that wasn't a good sign. 

"You'd love her. Very practical. Only a tiny bit sadistic. Some fuel cells were cracked during battle, but we figured out a way to reverse the ion charge to buy ourselves about 48 hours of time. But it's now dead in the water. We're 1000 light years from the nearest 7-11. Oxygen will run out tomorrow. And that'll be it. And Tash, I...I was really hoping to pull off one last miracle and make it back. But it looks like...well you know what it looks like. Don't feel bad about this. I mean, if you grovel for a couple of weeks, and then move on with enormous guilt. God, why can't I ever be serious? I want you to move on Tash, don't...don't let this break you. You were always stronger than me...you'll be okay. I should probably lie down, before...Please know that... when I drift off, I will think about you. Because it's always you. I love you, Tasha...and just know that I'm sorry. I'm _so_ sorry." Tony finished, and the video cut out.

Natasha stares at the screen for a couple seconds, before her body was wracked with sobs. She felt Clint wrap his arms around her hurriedly, and she fisted his shirt in her hands, and sobbed. 

"When was that transmission received?" a voice spoke up from behind them. Natasha let go of Clint and turned around to see Carol standing in the doorway, gaze fixed on the video. She took a moment to collect herself, before answering. 

"Uh, JARVIS told me about it, just now. Just before I watched it. Probably about 10 minutes ago." she answered, and Carol nodded. 

"There's a chance he's still alive, depending on how long ago that was recorded. I can trace the signal, and go look for him." she said, her voice solid and assured. Natasha gaped for a moment, before nodding. 

"You can do that?" she asked, and Carol nodded, before coming forward and typing a few things on the screen. 

"I'll go find him. I can't promise he'll be alive. But I'll get him back for you." Carol said, meeting Natasha's eyes with fervor. 

"Please." she said, her voice faint. Carol nodded, and left quickly. Once she was gone, Natasha sat back down, and put her head in her hands. 

"Nat. He could be okay." Clint said after a few moments of silence, his hand coming to rest on her back. She lifted her head up and looked at him, swallowing thickly. 

"Yeah. But Peter's not." she replied, voice rough. Clint stared at her for a moment.

"How do you know?" he asked. She blinked the tears out of her eyes, before sighing. 

"Because he didn't mention him once. And he said he was sorry at the end, and I know he wasn't apologizing for dying. I know him too well, he was apologizing...because Pe-Peter's...gone. And he blames himself." she finished, fresh tears making tracks down her face. Clint looked at her, his eyes showing the devastation he was feeling. 

"Oh, Nat." he whispered, before enveloping her in another hug. 

  
\---

Nebula helped him down the ramp of the ship, and he couldn't make out the figures on the lawn in the darkness. But as he reached the bottom, Steve came rushing over. Nebula looked to him and he nodded, letting her pass his weight off to the soldier. He looked at Steve, and swallowed. 

"Couldn't stop him." he whispered, and Steve frowned, helping him down the rest of the ramp. 

"Neither could I." he replied. Tony shook his head, tears stinging his eyes.

"I lost my kid." he said, and Steve looked at him with concern. 

"Tony, we lost." he replied, and Tony just ignored him, straining to look at the others on the lawn. 

"Is, uh...?" he starts, worried to ask if Natasha was still alive, when a small figure rushed up to him. He glimpsed a flash of red hair, before he was pulled into a hug. 

"Thank God." his wife said into his shoulder, and he let out a shaky sigh in relief.

"It's okay." he whispers to her, pressing a kiss to her cheek. She pulls away and looks at him, her eyes shining with tears. 

"He's gone, isn't he?" she asks quietly. He just nods, and she closes her eyes in pain before nodding too. 

"Okay." she says. "Let's get you inside." 

\---

"It's been 23 days since Thanos came to Earth." Rhodey said, his arms crossed. Natasha was sitting next to Tony, who had been confined to a wheelchair while they treated his undernourishment. She was holding tight to his hand, as he stared blankly at the list of those who were dusted flashed on the screen. He averted his eyes once Peter's face showed up, and he returned his focus to their hands. 

"World governments are in pieces. The parts that are still working are trying to take a census. And it looks like he did... he did exactly what he said he was gonna do. Thanos wiped out fifty percent, of all living creatures." Natasha spoke up, rubbing Tony's arm both in comfort, and to reassure herself that he was real. 

"Where is he now?" Tony asked, looking up over the top of his glasses. 

"We don't know. He just opened a portal and walked through." Steve said, his voice even. Tony let out a sigh, and looked around, his eyes landing on Thor, who was sitting on a bench staring blankly ahead. 

"What's wrong with him?" Tony asked, turning back to the group. Natasha opened her mouth to answer before the raccoon beat her to it. 

"Oh, he's pissed. He thinks he failed. Which of course he did, but you know there's a lot of that's going around, ain't there?" Rocket said bitterly, and Natasha rolled her eyes. Tony looked confused though, and raised a gaunt finger to point at the raccoon. 

"Honestly, until this exact second, I thought you were a Build-A-Bear." he said, and Natasha snorted. She knew Tony was resorting to snark, because he wasn't ready to deal with the reality of what was happening. 

"Maybe I am." Rocket defended, earning a snort from Rhodey. And Tony looked like he was going to reply when Steve spoke up, voice professional. 

"We've been hunting Thanos for three weeks now. Deep Space scans, and satellites, and we got nothing. Tony, you fought him." Steve said, playing tactician. Tony tensed beside her at being addressed. He pulled his hand out of hers and looked at Steve incredulously. 

"Who told you that?" he asked, his eyes wide, before he shook his head. "I didn't fight him. No, he wiped my face with a planet while the Bleecker Street Magician gave away the stone. That's what happened. There was no fight." Tony said, on the verge of hysteria. She tried to comfort him, but he shrugged her hand off his shoulder. 

"Okay." Steve said, plactatingly. 

"He's unbeatable." Tony continued. Steve let out an impatient breath, and Natasha knew this wasn't going to end well. She sat back in her seat, ready to intervene if necessary, but she still felt fragile from learning about Peter.

"Did he give you any clues, any coordinates, anything?" Steve asked again, and Tony let out a bitter laugh. 

"Pfft! I saw this coming a few years back. I had a vision. I didn't wanna believe it. Thought I was dreaming." Tony said, waving his arms frantically, sounding crazy. Natasha wanted so badly to help him, but he seemed to be shying away from any assistance. 

"Tony, I'm gonna need you to focus." Steve said, exasperatedly. Natasha looked over at Tony, and she could see something in his eyes shift, and there was only pure anger in them. 

"And I needed you. As in past tense. That trumps what you need. It's too late buddy. Sorry. You know what I need?" Tony spits, suddenly standing up, knocking things off the table. Natasha stands up after him, and lets her hands hover behind him, ready to assist him. 

"I need to shave. And I believe I remember telling all youse-" Tony says, making a move for Steve. Rhodey cuts between them quickly, with a hand on Tony's chest. 

"Tony, Tony, Tony!" Rhodey says, trying to guide him back to his chair, but Tony kept pushing. Natasha felt frozen, unsure of what to do. She knew his grief was finally hitting him, and he was going to take it out on whoever was in his way. 

"-Alive and otherwise what we needed was a suit of armor around the world! Remember that? Whether it impacted our precious freedoms or not- that's what we _needed_!" Tony continued, his voice raising into a shout. Steve just crossed his arms, not helping the situation. 

"Well, that didn't work out, did it?" Steve said. And Tony started towards him with new fervor, Rhodey still trying to hold him back. 

"I said, 'we'd lose'. You said, 'We'll do that together too.' And guess what, Cap? We lost. And you weren't there. But that's what we do, right? Our best work after the fact? We're the Avengers, we're the _Av_engers. Not the Prevengers." Tony rambled, voice thick with emotion, as he started looking around the room hysterically. 

"Okay." Natasha said gently, stepping forward, but he ignored her. 

"Right?" Tony repeats, looking around at everyone. 

"You made your point. Just sit down." Rhodey pleads softly, pushing Tony to his chair. Tony lets up for a second.

"Okay..." Tony huffs, looking at Rhodey, eyes wild. 

"Okay?" Rhodey asks, pushing him closer to the chair, before Tony shakes his head again. 

"Nah, nah. Here's my point. You know what?" Tony started again, fighting against Rhodey's hold more violently. 

"Tony, you're sick." Natasha heard herself pleading, wishing he would just sit down. Tony's eyes flew around the room, landing on Carol.

"She's great, by the way." Tony said, pointing at her, while Rhodey tried to coax him into sitting down. 

"We need you. You're new blood. Bunch of tired old mules!" Tony said, finally breaking away from Rhodey and marching right up to Steve. 

"I got nothing for you, Cap! I got no coordinates, no clues, no strategies, no options. Zero. Zip. Nada. No trust. Liar." Tony spat, voice a harsh whisper, while Steve's eyes flashed with emotion. They stare at each other for a moment, before Tony rips the housing unit off his chest, and shoves it into Steve's hand.

"Here, take this. You find him, and you put that on. You hide." he continues, voice rough and cracking with emotion. Natasha sees him falter, rushing to his side as he falls to the ground. 

"Tony!" she shouts, kneeling down next to him. He tries to wave her off, but fails. 

"I'm fine. I..." he struggles out, before his eyes roll to the back of his head, and he falls unconscious against her chest. 

"Oh, Tony." she sighs, looking up to Rhodey for help. They get him set up in a hospital bed in the next room, Bruce helping to evaluate any damage he might have done ripping out his IV. Clint walks in as she watches Bruce reinsert a new IV. 

"I'll watch him." he says, and she nods, stepping forward and gently taking the glasses off his face and setting them on the table beside the bed. 

"Thanks, Clint. I'm going to go...do damage control I guess." she replies, gesturing to the group gathered outside the room. He nods softly, and sits down next to the bed. She looks at her husband one last time, before rejoining the group. 

"Bruce gave him a sedative. He's gonna probably be out for the rest of the day." she said, mainly to Rhodey, as she approached. 

"You guys take care of him. And I'll bring him a Xorrian Elixir when I come back." Carol speaks up, turning and walking away quickly. They all exchange looks and follow her. 

"Where are you going?" Natasha demands, when they catch up. The woman turns impatiently. 

"To kill Thanos." she says simply, and Natasha glances at Steve. 

"Hey, you know, we usually work as a team here, and between you and I, morale's a little fragile." she says gently, giving Carol a small smile. 

"We realize up there is more your territory, but this is our fight too." Steve adds, voice grim. 

"You even know where he is?" Rhodey asks, crossing his arms. Carol looks around at them.

"I know people who might." she says with a shrug, when Nebula speaks up behind her. 

"Don't bother. I can tell you where Thanos is. Thanos spent a long time trying to perfect me. And when he worked, he talked about his great plan. Even disassembled, I wanted to please him. I'd ask where would we go once his plan was complete? His answer was always the same: 'To the Garden.'" she says, voice flat and deep. 

"That's cute, Thanos has a retirement plan." Rhodey scoffs, earning a fond look from Natasha. 

"So where is he?" Steve asks, as they all gather around a holotable. 

"When Thanos snapped his fingers, Earth became ground zero for a power surge of ridiculously cosmic proportions. No one's ever seen anything like it... Until two days ago. On this planet." Rocket says, bringing it up on the hologram. 

"Thanos is there." Nebula confirms, and Natasha stares at the holograms. 

"He used the stones again." she says, and Bruce speaks up behind her. 

"Hey, hey, hey. We'd be going in short-handed, you know." Bruce warns, always the voice of reason. 

"Look, he's still got the stones, so..." Rhodey trails off, looking around at everyone. 

"So let's get him... Use them to bring everyone back." Carol says, looking at them with wide eyes. 

"Just like that?" Rhodey asks.

"Yeah, just like that." Steve answers, as he looks to Carol.

"Even if there's a small chance that we can undo this... I mean we owe it to everyone who's not in this room to try." Natasha agrees, her mind on Peter.

"If we do this, how do we know it's gonna end any differently than it did before?" Bruce asks.

"Because before, you didn't have me." Carol responds, and Rhodey holds up his hands.

"Hey, new girl, everyone here is about that superhero life. And if you don't mind my asking, where the hell have you been all this time?" he demands. Carol just looks at him, face devoid of emotion. 

"There are a lot of other planets in the universe. And unfortunately, they didn't have you guys." she replies, and Rhodey just nods in acceptance. Then they all hear a chair being scrapped across the floor, and they all turn to see Thor standing up, heading over to stand in front of Carol. He sticks his hand out, waiting, until his ax flies into his hand. Carol just stands there, unflinching. 

"I like this one." he states, with a smile. Natasha lets out a nervous laugh before Steve speaks up. 

"Let's go get this son of a bitch." 

\---

"The stones were gone?" Tony asks, later that night after Natasha had returned from their Thanos killing mission. Natasha nods her head weakly, her gaze fixed on their entwined hands. 

"He had already destroyed them...and without them..." she trails off when her voice cracks with emotion. Tony just rubs his thumb across her knuckles, in some semblance of a comforting gesture. They sit silently together for a moment, before he looks at her. 

"Tash." he whispers, and she looks up at him, her eyes glittering with unshed tears. 

"Give me six months. I will try and figure out if there is any other way to get him back." Tony says, trying to sound confident, but knowing he failed. She arches her eyebrow at him. 

"And after six months?" she asks quietly. He averts his gaze to the ceiling above his hospital bed. 

"Tony." she prompts after he doesn't answer. 

"You remember that conversation we had...like two or three years after we got married?" Tony asks, looking down at her as her eyes widen in realization. 

"You don't mean?" she asks. And he nods. 

"Yeah. If I can't figure out how to bring him back...Tash." his voice breaks, and he takes a couple deep breaths, before he can continue. 

"He was my whole world. And if he's gone for good. I don't...I don't know if I can keep going...unless I have a reason to. Unless I have something to live for. Like I lived for him." he finishes, looking at the tears filling her eyes. She blinks quickly, a few tears falling down her cheeks, before she nods. 

"Okay. Six months, and then we'll talk about it." she says, squeezing his hand tightly. He nods, squeezing her hand back just as tightly, both of them shedding silent tears. 

\---

** _ONE YEAR LATER _ **

\---

  
"Carol, are we seeing you here next month?" she asks, looking over to the woman's hologram. She was at the compound for the week, checking in on things, while Steve took a few days off. 

"Not likely." the woman replied, looking apologetic. 

"What, you gonna get another haircut?" Rocket pipes in from his hologram, referring to the woman's new hairstyle. Carol rolls her eyes in annoyance. 

"Listen fur-face, I'm covering a lot of territory. The things that are happening on Earth, are happening everywhere, on thousands of planets." Carol defends, glaring at the animal until he hold his hands up in surrender. 

"All right, all right, that's a good point. That's a good point." Rocket murmurs in defeat.

"So you might not see me for a while." she says apologetically. Natasha waves her off and shrugs. 

"Alright. Uh, well. This channel is always active. So, if anything goes sideways... anyone's making trouble where they shouldn't... comes through me or Steve." she says. Okoye, Rocket, and Carol all nod their agreement and cut off their calls, leaving Rhodey and her alone. 

"Where are you?" she asks, trying to sound casual. He just looks at her for a moment before answering. 

"Mexico. That's where the satellites last picked up on him. But there's no sign of him now. Sorry." he answers and she nods. Clint has disappeared about six months previously, and hadn't checked in since. She was worried about him, and what he could be doing. 

"Whatever he's doing, he's staying out of sight, but he isn't hurting anyone. It seems like he's just wandering." Rhodey continues with a shrug. Natasha nods, swallowing a lump in her throat. 

"Will you let me know if you find where he's heading?" she asks, voice quiet. Rhodey nods, and hesitates for a moment. 

"He's doing okay. He...he's throwing everything into taking care of Pepper. It's driving her up the wall, I think." she says, and he looks grateful for the update. 

"When's the baby due? How's Pepper?" he asks. 

"She's doing good, her and Happy are engaged now, they moved into the cabin with Tony. The baby's due in three months...in August." she says, her voice cracking. August was Peter's birthday, and she didn't know how this year's reminder was going to go with the baby due so close to it. Rhodey nods in understanding. 

"He's got something to focus on...so it should be okay." Rhodey says, and Natasha shrugs, tears in her eyes. 

"I don't know. Last year...I thought he was going to give up, I can only hope this year will be better, considering everything." she said, a single tear falling down her face. Rhodey gives her a sympathetic smile. 

"I know. He's strong. You both are. You'll get through it. Call me if you need me okay?" Rhodey says softly, and she nods, unable to speak around the lump in her throat. He gives her one last smile before ending the call. 

She closes her eyes, and lets the few tears fall down her face with a deep breath, before she hears footsteps approaching.

"You know I'd offer to cook you dinner but you seem pretty miserable already." Steve says, and she opens her eyes to look over at him where he was leaning against the bookcase. 

"You back for good?" she asks. He shrugs. 

"And to check on a friend." he says, looking at her with concern.

"Clearly, your friend is fine." she replies, sending him an annoyed look. He smirks at her before walking over and setting his jacket on a chair and sitting down. 

"You know I saw a pod of whales when I was coming up the bridge." he states, changing the subject. She raises her eyebrow. 

"In the Hudson?" she asks, playing along. He nods. 

"There's fewer ships, cleaner water." he confirms, and she lets out a tired sigh. 

"You know, if you're about to tell me to look on the bright side. Um... I'm about you to hit you in the head with a peanut butter sandwich." she says with a lazy smirk. He lets out a stiff laugh, before nodding. 

"Sorry. Force of habit." he says, and she nods, handing the plate with the peanut butter sandwich to him.

"You know, I keep telling everybody they should move on and... grow. Some do. But not us." Steve starts, and Natasha eyes him carefully. 

"If I move on, who does this?" she asks, looking over at him. 

"Maybe it doesn't need to be done." Steve says with a shrug, and she watches him silently for a minute. 

"I used to have nothing. And then I got this. This job...my family. And I was... I was better because of it. And even though...they're gone...even though he's gone, I'm still trying to be better. Trying to keep everyone safe." she says slowly, looking away from him to the opposite wall. 

"I think we both need to get back to our lives." he says then, and she looks over to him with a joking smile. 

"You first." she jokes, before an alarm blares from the front gate. She pulls up the camera footage, and sees a guy standing there in front of a van. 

"Oh! Hi. Hi! Is anyone home? This is Scott Lang. I tried to break into your facility a few years ago. I get really small sometimes? I fought the Falcon on the roof? You probably wouldn't recognize me." the man rambles. Steve stands up at the mention of Sam. 

"Is this an old message?" he asks, furrowing his eyebrows. She shakes her head, looking over at him, and standing up too. 

"It's the front gate." she replies. Steve looks at her. 

"Sam mentioned him once...called him Tic-Tac. He goes by Ant-man I think. But he was on the list of the snapped." Steve said confused. She looked at him in surprise before the man spoke up again. 

"Ant-Man? Ant-Man, maybe you know that. I need to talk to you guys." he says urgently. Steve clicks the button to let him in and they rush to meet him, bringing him back to the common room. 

"Scott. Sam mentioned fighting you before...Are you okay?" Steve asked, as they watched the man pace back and forth in front of them. 

"Yeah. I'm fine." he says, still pacing and muttering to himself, before he stops and looks at them, hands in his hair. 

"Have you ever studied Quantum Physics?" he asks, and Steve looks at her confused, so she answers. 

"Only to make conversation." she replies, and Steve looks at her dryly so she shrugs. Scott nods, accepting the answer, before continuing. 

"Alright. So... last year, right before Thanos, I was in a place called the Quantum Realm. The Quantum Realm is like its own microscopic universe. To get in there, you have to be incredibly small. Hope, she's my...She was my...She was supposed to pull me out. And then Thanos happened, and I got stuck in there." Scott explained, and Natasha winced in sympathy. 

"I'm sorry. That must've been a very long year." she replies, and he shakes his head frantically. 

"Yeah, but that's just it. It wasn't. For me, it was an hour." he says, and Natasha looks over at Steve in shock. 

"See, the rules of the Quantum Realm aren't like they are up here. Everything is unpredictable. Is that anybody's sandwich? I'm starving." Scott says, walking over to her sandwich and taking a bite. 

"Scott, what are you talking about?" Steve asks, bringing the man back to the conversation. 

"What I'm saying is, time works differently in the Quantum Realm. The only problem is right now, we don't have a way to navigate it. But what if we did? I can't stop thinking about it. What if, we could somehow control the chaos, and we could navigate it? What if there was a way to enter the Quantum Realm at a certain point in time but then exit at another point in time? Like... Like before Thanos." Scott says, waving his hands around, and Natasha freezes. 

"Wait, are you talking about a time machine?" Steve asks, and Natasha flicks her eyes between the two of them, mind racing. 

"No. No, of course not. No, not a time machine. It's more like a... Yeah, a time machine. I know it's crazy. But I can't stop thinking about it. There's gotta be some way... There's gotta be...some w... it's crazy." Scott says, backtracking with a shake of his head. She holds up her hand to stop him. 

"Scott, I get e-mails from a raccoon, so nothing sounds crazy anymore." she reassures him. He nods, looking between both of them. 

"So who do we talk to about this?" he asks, and Natasha shares a look with Steve. 

"We need to talk to my husband." she says. 

  
\---

  
"Tony would you just sit down? I'm fine." Pepper said, swatting his hands away as he tried to tuck a blanket around her swollen stomach. 

"It's chilly out here, I don't want you to catch a cold. Crap, I forgot your water. Be right back." he says, and she just rolls her eyes fondly before waving him away. 

"Tony! You have visitors." he hears Pepper call from the porch, and he furrows his eyebrows and walks outside. He eyes Natasha suspiciously when she walks up with Steve and another man who looked familiar. 

"Hey Hap!" he calls, and the man appears behind him in the doorway. 

"Yeah?" the man asks, also eyeing the newcomers. 

"Take Pep inside would you? Keep an eye on her?" he asks, and Happy rolls his eyes but complies, walking over and helping Pepper to her feet. 

"You do know she's _my_ fiance right?" he asks as they pass him again. Tony waves him away with a grumble, before walking to meet his wife at the steps. 

"Hi, love. Didn't know you were going to bring some friends over." he says casually, pressing a kiss to her cheek when he reaches her. She rolls her eyes and winds her arm around his back and motions to the others. 

"This is Scott Lang, or Ant-Man." she says, and Tony furrows his eyebrows as he looks down at her. 

"Lang. I've heard of you. I thought you were...uh you know." Tony said awkwardly, and the other man just stands there gaping at him. Steve shakes his head softly before turning to him. 

"That's just it Tony, he wasn't. He was somewhere else. Look, can we go somewhere and discuss this?" Steve asked him. Tony looks down at Natasha who nods quickly, and he agrees, leading them to the porch. He sits and pulls Natasha onto his lap as he listens to their plans. 

"Now, we know what it sounds like..." Scott trails off after they explained everything. 

"Tony, after everything you've seen, is anything really impossible?" Steve cuts in, his voice desperate. Tony sighs, running his hand over his wife's arm and looks at them. 

"Quantum fluctuation messes with the Planck Scale, which then triggers the Deutsch Proposition. Can we agree on that?" Tony says then, receiving blank stares from the two men and an exasperated one from his wife. He rolls his eyes, pressing a kiss to her forehead, before continuing. 

"In Layman's terms, it means you're not coming home." Tony says, and he can feel Natasha tense up a bit in his arms. 

"I did." Scott argues, and Tony shakes his head. 

"No, you accidentally survived. It's a billion to one cosmic fluke. And now you wanna pull off a...What do you call it?" Tony asks, shifting Natasha to the chair and standing up, resting his hand on her shoulder. 

"A time heist?" Scott replied hesitantly, causing Tony to let out a small huff of laughter. 

"Yeah, a time heist. Of course, why didn't we think of this before? Oh, because it's laughable? Because it's a pipe-dream?" Tony spits, feeling frustrated. He knew that speaking to Scott probably gave Natasha some kind of hope, and he didn't want to have to be the one to crush that. 

"The Stones are in the past. We can go back and get them." Scott says, looking between Natasha and Steve for help.

"We can snap our own fingers. We can bring everyone back." Natasha speaks up finally, and he turns to look at her, but she's avoiding his gaze. 

"Or screw it up worse than he already has, right?" Tony replies, trying to get them to see reason. Steve shakes his head, crossing his arms defiantly. 

"I don't believe we would." he says confidently. Tony smiles. 

"Gotta say, sometimes I miss that giddy optimism. However, high hopes won't help if there's no logical, tangible way for me to safely execute said time heist. I believe the most likely outcome would be our collective demise." Tony says, trying to make his voice gentle.

"Not if we strictly follow the rules of time travel. That means no talking to our past selves, no betting on sporting events-" Scott continues, and Tony stops him. 

"I'm gonna stop you right there, Scott. Are you seriously telling me that your plan to save the universe is based on Back To The Future?" Tony asks curiously, watching as Scott shook his head in embarrassment. 

"No." he says awkwardly, and Tony lets out a sigh, rubbing his nose. 

"Good. You had me worried there. 'Cause that'd be horse shit. That's not how quantum physics works." Tony replies, sitting back down beside Natasha. She grabs his hand softly and looks at him, hope in her eyes. He swallows down the guilt of having to go against it. 

"Tony... We have to take a stand." she whispers, and he looks at her desperately. 

"We did stand. And yet, here we are." he replies, pain in his voice, as he looks at her. She lets out a shaky breath and looks away from him, as Scott speaks up again. 

"I know you got a lot on the line. You got a wife, a...pregnant friend? But I lost someone very important to me. A lot of people did. And now, now we have a chance to bring her back. To bring everyone back. And you're telling me that you won't even...?" Scott says, and Tony shakes his head, squeezing Natasha's hand. 

"That's right, Scott, I won't even. I lost my kid. Okay? I lost him. And that pregnant friend in there, is caring our child. I have to make sure the world is safe, for my kid. The kid that's _here_. I can't get stuck in the past." Tony says sadly, blinking back tears. He could hear Natasha breathing shakily beside him as Steve looked at him in confusion. 

"Pepper's carrying your baby? As in yours and Nat's?" Steve asks softly. Natasha looks up with a sad smile. 

"Yes. I can't get pregnant. Pepper offered to be our surrogate years ago...so we finally took her up on it." she replies, and Steve looks at her with both pain and happiness in his eyes. 

"I wish you'd come here to ask me something else. Anything else. Honestly." Tony piped up then, rubbing Natasha's back in comfort as she wiped the tears from her eyes. 

"Tony, I get it. And I'm happy for you guys, I really am. But this is a second chance." Steve says, trying again. 

"I got my second chance right here, Cap. I can't roll the dice again. Not again." he says, with a pained smile. And Steve nods, standing up. 

"I'll walk you to the car." Natasha says, walking away and sharing a brief hug with Steve, before they left. She watched them go for a minute, before heading back over to him.

"I'm sorry." he says as soon as she reaches him. She looks at him curiously, before settling in his lap once again, head tucked under his chin, fingers tracing an absent pattern on his chest.

"For what?" she asks after a bit. He lets out a shaky breath, his throat tight. 

"For having to kill your hope like that. I-if there was any way it could...you know that I...for him..." Tony chokes out and Natasha shushes him, pressing a kiss to his neck. 

"I know, baby. I know. It's okay." she whispers, tucking herself closer to his chest. He wraps his arms tightly around her as they sit there in silence. 

\---

"What are you two fine ladies up to?" Tony asks, walking into the room where she and Pepper were discussing the garden. 

"Discussing Gerald's tendency to eat our fruit before we can." Natasha states with a laugh, before taking in Tony's stance. He was staring over at his work table, only half paying attention to the conversation. 

"Yeah? Well that's Gerald for you." he states absently, and Natasha shares a concerned look with Pepper. She pulls him down to sit next to her on the couch, when he suddenly turns to her eyes wild. 

"I figured it out, by the way." he blurts, and she raises her eyebrows. Pepper looks between the two of them. 

"You know, just so we're talking about the same thing-" Pepper asks, watching Tony. He lets out a stuttered breath. 

"Time travel." he says with a jerky nod. Looking between the two of them. 

"What? Wow... That's amazing, and..." Pepper starts, amazement in her voice, but trailing off. 

"Terrifying." Natasha finishes with a nod. Tony looks down at her, grabbing her hand. 

"That's right." he agrees. 

"Does this mean you could help everybody?" Pepper asks gently, looking at them. Tony nods, but then shrugs. 

"Not if I stop. I can put a pin in it right now, and stop." he says, as if he was begging them to stop him. Natasha furrows her eyebrows, looking over at Pepper. 

"Tony, trying to get you to stop has been one of the few failures of my life." Pepper replies, with a laugh. Natasha smiles at her, before turning back to Tony, who is also smiling. 

"Something tells me I should put it in a locked box and drop it at the bottom of a lake...go to bed." Tony says, eyes becoming unfocused in thought. Natasha rubs his arm softly until he meets her eyes. 

"But would you be able to rest?" she asks gently, and he lets out a defeated sigh, dropping his forehead against hers. 

"We're going to have to go to the compound." he says, lifting his head back up and looking at Pepper apologetically. She smiles at him encouragingly. 

"I'll be fine. I have Happy, remember?" she says, giving him permission. "Besides. The baby isn't due for another three months, you have time to save the world one more time." she says with a smirk, causing Tony to let out a startled laugh. 

\---

They were driving quickly down the driveway of the compound a couple days later, when they spotted Steve standing outside. 

"Be nice." Natasha reminded him, before they came to a stop next to him. He scoffed, rolling down the window. 

"Why the long face? Let me guess: He turned into a baby." he asks, and Steve shakes his head in defeat, before looking at Tony with a flat look. 

"Among other things, yeah. What are you doing here?" Steve asks, and Tony gets out of the car. He hurries around to the other side, opening the door for Natasha, talking as he did so. 

"That's the EPR Paradox. Instead of pushing Lang through time, you might've wound up pushing time through Lang. It's tricky. Dangerous. Somebody should've cautioned you against it." Tony said, coming back around to stop at the back of the car with Natasha, who playfully hit his shoulder. Steve shook his head. 

"You did." Steve admitted with a sigh. And Tony smirked, ignoring Natasha's glare. 

"Oh, did I?" he asks smugly. "Thank God I'm here. Regardless, I fixed it." he says, holding up his right hand, brandishing the device he built. He turned to the trunk, opening it up. 

"A fully functioning Time-Space GPS. I just want peace." he says, flashing Steve a peace sign before rummaging around in the back for his supplies. "Turns out, resentment is corrosive, and I hate it." he says, closing the trunk and standing in front of Steve.

"Me too." Steve admits, with a small grateful smile. 

"We got a shot at getting these stones, but I gotta tell you my priorities: Bring back what we lost? I hope, yes. Keep what I got? I have to, at all costs. And... maybe not die trying will be nice." he says, watching Steve carefully. 

"Sounds like a deal." he replies, holding out his hand, which Tony shakes. 

"Are are getting the whole team?" he asks, as they head inside. 

"We're working on that right now. Rhodey thinks he's found Clint." Steve replies, and Natasha looks to him. 

"I'll go get him. He'll come if he sees me." she says, and Steve nods. 

"I'll get the coordinates." he says. 

\---

  
"Okay, so the 'how' works. Now we gotta figure out the when and the where. Almost all of us has had an encounter with at least one of the six Infinity Stones." Steve says, as they all gather around in the common room. Clint seemed pretty shaken from his test ride, and Tony had to assume he went back and saw his family, if the baseball glove he was staring at was any indication.

"Well I'd substitute the word encounter for damn well near been killed by one of the six Infinity Stones." Tony cuts in, looking away from Clint to the rest of the group. 

"I haven't, I don't even know what the hell you're all talking about." Scott says, his hand raised. Tony rolled his eyes, and glances at Natasha, who is watching Clint worriedly. 

"Regardless, we only have enough Pym Particles for one round trip each, and these stones have been in a lot of different places throughout history." Bruce says, taking off his glasses and running his hands through his hair. Tony nods, clapping the scientist on the shoulder. 

"Our history. So, not a lot of convenient spots to just drop in." he reminds everyone. 

"Which means we have to pick our targets." Clint speaks up, voice quiet, and Tony nods. 

"Correct." Tony says, and Natasha looks up at him. 

"So where could we go, where all the stones were, with the smallest chance we run into our past selves?" she mused, and everyone sat there silent for a minute thinking. 

"What if we get them right after Thanos snapped the first time?" Steve speaks up, and Tony sits up a bit straighter. 

"That could work. We know he went right to that planet you guys found him at right? So we go there, we grab the gauntlet while he's weak, and we get out of there." Tony says, standing up and beginning to pace. 

"And just leave him there?" Scott asks incredulously. Tony shrugs. 

"Our priority is the stones. We flash to that time, grab them, leave. We don't have time to fight him, we won't win." Tony explains, but Natasha holds up her hands. 

"Wait, if we leave him alive, won't he just come after us again?" she asks, her eyebrows raised. Tony nods.

"Yeah. No doubt he will. But if we use the stones to undo what he did, and everything that happened as a result of that...there was a chance it would bring him back too anyway. Restore the balance and all that shit he was always ranting about. But this time...hopefully...we'll all be together. And we'll have the stones." Tony says, looking over at Steve who is watching him carefully. Everyone stays silent, thinking over his words, before Rhodey speaks up. 

"It makes sense. It's the only shot we have. If he comes, he comes." Rhodey says, before Thor stands up. 

"And if he comes, I'll aim for the head this time." he agrees. 

"We're in agreement then? Flash to the planet, grab it and go. Then if we undo everything...we should be able to beat him when he comes calling?" Tony asks, looking around at the people that had slowly become part of his family throughout the years. 

"This will be the fight of our lives. But we're gonna win. Whatever it takes." Steve says, looking at him with a determined nod. 

  
\---

"Come on, buddy. Wake up. That's my man." he says, shaking Steve's shoulder until he opens his eyes. He helps the man up and hands him his shield. "You lose this again, I'm keeping it." he snarks, and Steve looks around. 

"What happened?" Steve asks. Tony shrugs. 

"You messed with time. It tends to mess back. You'll see." he says, pointing over to where Thor was standing. They walk over to see him staring down at a lone Thanos sitting in the distance. 

"What's he been doing?" Tony asks, watching the titan warily. 

"Absolutely nothing." Thor answers, voice rumbling with suspicion. 

"Where are the stones?" Steve asks. Tony gestures around the compounds remains. Hulk had just finished snapping, starting to shrink back down into Bruce, when something entered the atmosphere and blew the compound to shreds. He could only hope Natasha was okay, and that the snap actually worked.

"Somewhere under all this. All I know is he doesn't have them." Tony says, pointing out the one bright side. 

"So we keep it that way." Steve says, and Tony nods. 

"You know it's a trap, right?" Thor asks them both. Tony lets out a sarcastic breath. 

"Yeah. And I don't much care." he says coldly. 

"Good. Just as long we are all in agreement." Thor says, calling Storm-breaker to his hand, his clothes suddenly transforming to his armor. "Let's kill him properly this time." he says, before he begins walking towards the Titan. Tony and Steve follow, walking slowly. 

"You could not live with your own failure. And where did that bring you? Back to me." Thanos starts speaking as they get closer. "I thought by eliminating half of life, the other half would thrive. But you’ve shown me that’s impossible. And as long as there are those that remember what was, there will always be those that are unable to accept what can be. They will resist." he continues, looking into the distance. Tony rolls his eyes. 

"Yep. We're all kinds of stubborn." Tony snarks, and the Titan finally turns to look at them. 

"I'm thankful. Because now, I know what I must do." he continues, standing up. "I will shred this universe down to its last atom." he threatens, putting on his helmet. "And then– With the stones you've collected for me, create a new one. Teeming with life, but knows not what it has lost but only what it has been given. A grateful universe." he finishes, facing them. Thor grumbles as lightning surrounds his form. 

"Born out of blood." Steve spits out angrily. And Thanos nods, brandishing his sword. 

"They'll never know it. Because you won't be alive to tell them." 

\---

Tony hit the ground hard. He let out a curse as he turned around and saw the creature he was fighting advancing on him. Then suddenly white webs, webs he never thought he would see again, shot out and pulled the creature away. In a split second giant Scott stepped on the creature, and soon he was face to face with his son. The son he never thought he would see again. He felt his breath hitch in his chest, as Peter rushed over to him, and wildly excited look on his face. 

"Hey! Holy cow! You will not believe what's been going on. Do you remember when we were in space? And I got all dusty? I must've passed out, Because I woke up, and you were gone. But Doctor Strange was there, right? He was like, 'It's been a year. Come on, they need us.' And then he started doing the yellow sparkly thing that he does all the time–" Peter rambled, and Tony felt something in him break, and he rushed forward with a stifled sob. 

"My baby." he felt himself sob against Peter's shoulder. 

"Dad?" Peter asked, his arms gripping Tony tighter at the sound of his sobs, but sounding a bit confused. A crash from their left broke him out of his trance and he pulled away, whipping his head around checking for danger. But all he saw was Natasha, standing on a pile of dead aliens, staring at them with a broken expression. Peter followed his gaze and made a wounded noise in the back of his throat. 

"What's going on?" he asked, turning to Tony, his eyes pained. Tony shook his head a few times, and he watched as Natasha broke into a run and almost knock Peter over with the force of her hug. 

"Hey, bug." she whispered, pulling away, pressing a kiss to his forehead. Peter gave her a confused but broken smile. 

"Hey, Mama." he whispered, and Tony felt his world realign, watching his family be reunited. 

"As good as it is to see you guys...maybe we should...get back to the fight?" Peter said finally, looking between them. Natasha winced but nodded. 

"Yes. We should. Peter Parker Stark, you be careful or I will find you and kill you myself. Understand?" she asked, not waiting for a response before pressing a kiss to Tony's cheek and running back to the battle. Peter looked at him in bewilderment. 

"That didn't even make sense. What is going on?" he asked, and Tony felt a laugh bubble out of him. 

"We'll explain later kiddo. But as your mother said, be careful. Okay?" he said, pulling Peter into one more hug. Peter nodded, and they both launched back into the fight. 

Everything in him screamed at him to keep Peter in his sights, but he knew his kid could take care of himself, and he forced himself to look away. 

  
\---

Tony gets launched away from Thanos, and he dawns the gauntlet. But he knew his plan had worked, and he positioned himself to face the Titan. 

"I am inevitable." the dumb purple space grape said, lifting his gloved hand and snapping. When nothing happened he looked down at the now empty gauntlet in anger. Tony lifts his hand, watching as the stones click in place in his armored gauntlet. He kept his face blank as he stared at the Titan, despite the excruciating pain filling his body. 

"And I-" he starts, but is cut off by a scream of terror. 

"NOOOO!" he turns to his left and sees Peter running full force at him, grabbing onto the arm that held the gauntlet, his face twisting in pain. Tony felt some of his own pain lessen, but he tried to push Peter off. 

"Kid-" he tried, but Peter glared at him. 

"No. You're not doing this alone. Cap!" he said, looking over Tony's head to where the Super Soldier was watching. Steve looked at him for a moment, before nodding, heading towards them a hand on his comm. 

"Avengers! Assemble!" he called, and soon people were appearing out of nowhere, grabbing hands with Peter or touching Tony in some way, sharing the power of the stones. Tony felt the pain dissipating as his family helped take the power. He looked to his left, seeing Peter with his determined jaw, and to his right where Natasha was stood, a smug smirk on her face as she looked at Thanos. Tony smirked as well, turning back to the purple figure. 

"As I've said before, if we can't protect the Earth, you can be damned well sure we'll avenge it." Tony said, sneering, before he snapped his fingers. There was a big flash of colorful lights, before everything settled. 

"Did we win?" Peter asked, clutching the hand that had been on Tony's arm. Tony looked around at everyone, who all seemed to be battered but alive, watching as Thanos and his army faded to dust. 

"Yeah kid. We won." he said, a smile crossing his face. Peter let out a delirious laugh, before falling to the ground dramatically.

"Yay. Go team. Does anyone have any orange slices?" he asked, causing the rest of the group to let out a string of laughs. 

  
\---

  
Tony walked out onto the porch, finding Steve standing on the steps looking out at the people spread out across the lawn. He walked over and leaned up against the post next to him. 

"Earth's mightiest heroes, everyone." he joked, motioning to the yard. He saw Steve smile out of the corner of his eye as he watched the scene in front of him. 

There were several picnic tables set up around the yard, people milling about waiting for the party to start. Bucky was being tackled by Clint's kids, while Clint and Sam heckled him from a distance, Laura looking on with a fond smile. 

Scott and Hope were kneeling down next to Cassie, as she played with an unusually large ant. Tony shook his head at that one, but chose to ignore it. 

Thor was waving his arms around as he told a story, Loki smiling reverently beside him, while Bruce, Pepper, and Happy listened on with tears of laughter in their eyes. 

Rhodey was playing paper football with Nebula, and he was losing, if the glare on his face was any indication. The Guardians were all huddled at the next table, watching over the tree's shoulder as he played one of Peter's video games. 

Dr. Strange and Wong were sitting calmly watching the rest of the chaos. The king and his little sister were arguing over something, as Okoye and their mother watched on with exasperated smiles. Wanda and Vision were huddled under a tree, laughing over some personal joke. 

And to Tony's greatest surprise he watched as Nick Fury let out a loud laugh at something Carol said, as they sat at another picnic table. Steve let out a sigh of contentment. 

"Yeah. Hard to believe that they are all here." he said, and Tony turned to look at the soldier with a smile. 

"Well they are. And making a mess of my lawn. We won, Cap. Time to relax. The stones are gone, everyone's back. If that doesn't call for a random backyard cookout celebration, then I don't know what does." he said with a smirk, and Steve let out a small laugh, when they both heard a set of footsteps coming from behind them.

"And here I thought it was my birthday party." Peter said, walking out in front of Natasha. Tony let out a laugh. 

"We'll have to multi-task then. Cause I know someone else who's worth celebrating." Natasha spoke, looking down at the bundle in her arms. Tony felt love swell in his chest at the glow on his wife's face as she looked at their daughter. 

"Right. Cap, you can be one of the first to meet my newest spawn. Maria Natalia Stark." Tony said with a grin, pulling Peter to his side. 

"She's beautiful, Tony." Steve said, his big hand gently holding one of Maria's small ones, smiling once more before excusing himself and joining the rest of the group. Tony looked down and pressed a kiss onto his daughter's head. 

"What do you think, Pete?" he asked softly, watching his son's eyes travel over the baby's form. Natasha looked up with a curious expression, but he could see the hint of apprehension in her eyes. Peter looked up after a few moments, and gave them a cheeky smile. 

"If I had known this was an option, I would have begged you for a sibling years ago." he said, and Natasha rolled her eyes, while Tony laughed. He watched his little family for a minute, before looking over at Peter, a serious look on his face.

"You know we weren't trying to replace you or anything...right bug?" Tony asked, and Peter looked up at him with wide eyes. He studied Tony for a moment before shaking his head. 

"Dad...I was...I was dead. For all you guys knew, I wasn't coming back." Tony winced at the reminder, but Peter squeezed his hand. "To me, if that had been true, I would have wanted you to move on. In anyway you could. I'm just glad I get to be here to see her grow up. I'm going to be the greatest big brother." Peter said, with a serious nod. Tony let out a wet laugh. 

"You sure will, bug." he said, pressing a kiss to his forehead, before Peter wrinkled his nose. 

"You guys better be careful with her nickname though. You call me bug...and I turned into one." Peter said, giving them a wink, before taking his sister gently out of Natasha's arms and walking over to the rest of the heroes. Natasha let out a snort as he walked away. 

"I sometimes can't believe he's back." she whispered. "It doesn't feel real sometimes." Tony wrapped her up in his arms. 

"I know. But it's over. Part of the journey is the end. But...if you're lucky, in that end, you can find a new beginning." Tony said, rocking them back and forth as they both watched the heroes fawn over their daughter. They watched silently, before Natasha elbowed him gently, extracting herself from his arms. 

"You're such a sap." she said, grabbing his hand and leading him down the steps. He shrugged, but followed her. 

"Hey you think peanut is a safe nickname...or do you think that will doom her into fighting crime while dressed like a peanut?" Tony asked hypothetically, earning a playful glare from Natasha, as they reached the rest of his family. 

"Let's get this party started!" he announces, winding his arms around Peter and Natasha, who is now holding Maria.

And Tony smiles, his world finally safe in his arms. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey...Hi. What did you guys think? Please leave a comment and let me know!
> 
> Now...I don't know if I will do Black Widow or Far From Home. Black Widow because I obviously it's not out yet. And Far From Home is so heavily based on the snap and Tony being gone, that I'm not sure how I would change it. But if anyone has any ideas, I'm totally down to writing it. 
> 
> Now...end credit scene, I want to have one. And I have an idea for one, but I wanted to know if there was anything you guys wanted to see? 
> 
> Now please let me know what you think, and if you guys want more from this family. Whether it be missing moments from the movies I didn't include originally, or flashback to Peter's childhood, or flashforwards...let me know. 
> 
> THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING!! YOU GUYS ARE SO AMAZING!


	18. Post Credit Scene-Montage

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> READ BOTH AUTHOR'S NOTES PLEASE!!!!
> 
> My first idea at a post credit scene was a bit of a written montage of all my fav IronWidow family moments. I wanted to do this as a thank you for all the support you guys have given on this story, and the little family I created. 
> 
> I decided to continue this story in a few different ways. I still haven't decided whether or not I will do FFH, but I will add to this whenever I come up with ideas for either snippets from the movies I didn't originally include, or little fast forwards, and also flashbacks to Peter's childhood or when Nat and Tony met. 
> 
> If you are interested in any of these let me know! Also if you have any requests, I'd love to hear them!
> 
> The story will show up as complete, but don't worry, this story is far from over. 
> 
> Love you guys!!
> 
> Also: I had some questions on the last chapter about who died on Vormir. The team went back in time to the planet Thanos went to right after the snap and grabbed the gauntlet then, with all the stones already there. That way no one had to die on Vormir. I didn't understand why the movie didn't go to a time when all the stones were already gathered, so I decided to do it that way. Hope that makes sense!

"Hey, why don't you wake up Peter? Huh? Just hold him for a bit, and then we can all have a sleepover in our room tonight yeah?" his wife's soft melodic voice swept over him, and he nodded, finally extracting himself. She gave him a kiss on the forehead, and he noticed her eyes were a little red too. He gave her hand one last squeeze before she headed to their room, leaving him to wake Peter. 

He turned to look at his son, and gently shook his shoulder. He watched as Peter's face scrunched, before his eyes slowly opened. It took a while for him to register who woke him up, but the second he did, he jolted up. 

"DADDY!" he yelled, launching himself into Tony's already outstretched arms. 

"Yeah baby. Daddy's home." he whispered, feeling grateful he was able to have the feeling of his kid in his arms again, holding him tighter than necessary. 

"You were gone sooo long. But I'm glad you're home. Is Mommy back too?" Peter asked, pulling away after a moment. It was too soon for Tony's liking, but he let it happen. He gave Peter a kiss on his nose, causing the boy to giggle before he answered. 

"Yeah, bud. She's upstairs waiting for us. We are going to have a sleepover." Tony said, standing up, bringing Peter with him. He knew logically his son was a little too old to be carried around, but he couldn't help it. 

"No way! That's so cool!" Peter said, before his attention was drawn to the arc reactor in Tony's chest. 

"Daddy? Why do you have a light in your chest?" Peter asked, and Tony stiffened a bit as he walked into their secret bedroom. Natasha was sitting on the bed, and had heard the question, because she was now sitting up straight, her eyes trained on his chest. 

"It's a battery to help Daddy's heart." Tony answered, helping Peter get comfortable in their bed. Peter seemed to accept this answer, snuggling in between the two adults, before quickly falling back asleep. 

"A battery?" Natasha's whisper made him look up from where he was watching Peter. He gave her a smile, that was more like a grimace. 

"Shrapnel. It's an arc reactor, it's keeping the shrapnel from reaching my heart. It's okay, I'm okay." He assured her, giving her a kiss over Peter. She nodded before settling down, reaching out a hand to hold his, both of them facing each other. 

"I'm so glad you're alive, любовь." Natasha whispered, when Tony was on the edge of sleep. He just hummed in response, already losing the battle of consciousness, as she pressed a kiss into his hand. He drifted off into the first and last dreamless sleep he would have in a while. 

\---

"Do you really have to go Daddy?" Peter asked, sitting on top of Tony's suitcase. Tony poked him in the side a couple times to make him giggle before zipping up his suitcase.

"Yes, Auntie Pepper said we have to go." he answered his son, checking his watch. He was only waiting on one thing. 

"We? Does that mean Mommy is going to?" Peter asked, playing with Tony's fingers. Tony let out a sigh. 

"Yeah if I can convince her to. You are going to go stay with Uncle Eye-patch." Tony said. It had taken him a lot of convincing for Fury to take Peter for a couple days. He would normally just leave him with Mary's brother and sister in law, but he needed Peter to be safe. And being with the biggest spy in the world, surrounded by his minions, was the safest he could get. 

"Oooooh Uncle Eye-patch is cool. He's cranky sometimes but he gives me candy, and lets me pet his cat." Peter said, getting distracted by the toys sitting in front of him. Tony did a double take at his sons words, raising his eyebrows in amusement, before the door opened behind him. 

\---

"Hey Peter, shhhh. Uncle Phil went to go get Momma, okay? She'll be here any minute. But you need to calm down okay?" he whispered to his son. Peter seemed to understand what he said over his cries, because they calmed down substantially, but there were still tears rolling down his face. He continued rocking them back and forth, until he heard footsteps coming through the entryway. 

"Peter?" he heard his wife call and soon she was rushing toward them. He handed Peter over willingly, but stayed close to his little family. 

"Natalie?" he heard Pepper ask. Natasha heard and snapped her head up to send Tony a look. 

"Sorry. Peter wouldn't calm down unless he saw you." Tony defended, and Natasha nodded, before turning her attention to Peter. 

"Hey, bug. Why don't you take a breath and tell Momma why you're crying?" she said in a soft voice, so unlike the voice she used as Natalie. Peter hiccuped a few times, before answering, Natasha's hands coming up to wipe the tears from his face. 

"Be-because Un-uncle Phil said you and Daddy were fighting robots. A-and Daddy came home, but you didn't. I thought you got hurted." Peter hiccuped. Natasha deflated at his words, and Tony rubbed a hand over her back. 

"It's okay, baby. We're okay. We're here." she whispered pressing a kiss to his forehead. They all sat there in silence, as Natasha rocked their son back and forth. It didn't take long until he fell asleep. He helped Natasha stand, while keeping Peter in her arms. 

"I'll take him to bed. I think you have some explaining to do." Natasha said, nodding towards Pepper. He nodded, pressing a kiss to her forehead, before she gave him a gentle smile and headed upstairs. 

\---

"I thought I was going to die, Tash. I thought I was never going to get to see you guys again. You have to understand-" he trailed off, a lump forming in his throat. Natasha studied him before making a hum of understanding. 

"You were trying to push us away. To make it easier on us when you died." she stated, rather than questioned. He nodded, closing his eyes as the tears fell down his face. 

"I didn't mean any of those things I said to you, I just thought...if you hated me, it wouldn't hurt so much." Tony said, sniffing. Natasha shook her head, and pulled him into a hug, his head tucked under her chin. 

"You were wrong. It would have hurt just the same." she whispered, and Tony let out a choked sob. He felt her press a kiss to his head. 

"It's okay. You're not going to die. Let's go get some sleep." she said, pulling him up and wrapping her arms around his waist, leading him up the stairs. 

"I love you Tasha." he said, as she helped him under the covers. 

"I love you too, Tony." she whispered back, kissing him softly, before turning the light off and settling herself on his chest. 

"I'm so glad you're still alive, любовь." she said, mirroring what she said months previously. He pressed a kiss into her hair. 

"Not as glad as I am. I could never leave you." he responded, feeling her drift off to sleep in his arms. 

\---

"Tash?" he called as he opened the door. He saw her sitting quietly next to Clint, as he worked his wrists into his restraints. She looked over alarmed, but stood up to greet him. He rushed over and pulled her into his arms, pressing a kiss to her lips quickly, before pulling away and skimming his eyes over her for injuries.

"Are you okay? Fury wouldn't tell me much but he said something about the Hulk then Barton..." Tony rambled, panic building in his chest. He stopped talking when her hands came up to cup his cheeks. 

"Hey, I'm okay." she whispered, stroking his cheeks gently. He nodded, letting out a sigh of relief. 

\---

"Dad?" Peter's sobs caused Tony's heart to clench. He glanced warily around for a second, before deciding he didn't care. 

"Hey baby, what's wrong?" he asked softly, feeling the odd looks he was getting behind him. 

"Pepper had the news on, and-and you flew u-up into th-that hole! But you did-didn't come back out!" Peter sobbed, and Tony frowned, looking at Natasha briefly. 

"It's okay bug, I'm just fine. The Hulk caught me, isn't that cool?" Peter's sobs died down a bit after that, until all that's left were soft hiccups. 

"Yeah, I guess that's pretty cool. Is Mom there?" he asked then, and Tony grimaced. 

"Nah bud, she's not with me at the moment, but as soon as she is I'll have her call you." Tony said, but that seemed to be the wrong thing to say because Peter's breathing picked up on the other line again. 

"Wait, she's not with you? Then how do you know she's okay? Where is she? She was all over the TV too!" Peter demanded, sounding on the verge of tears again. Tony let out a sigh and started pacing, glancing at Natasha, who had a pained look on her face. The others just looked confused, except for Clint who was glancing worriedly at Natasha.

"She's okay, Peter. I promise. She's just busy right now." he defended weakly, not even believing his own words. He hated lying to his kid. 

"You're lying. Where is she? She's not...she's not dead right?" Peter asked then, too smart for his own good, his voice cracking at the end. Tony sighed, and slumped down onto the couch where the others were sat, putting his head in his hand. 

"No, Pete. Mom's not dead." and with those words, he heard Natasha curse softly in Russian, before she stood up. She marched over to him and grabbed the phone out of his hand, before directing her words into it. 

"Peter." she said, and he could vaguely hear the relief on the other line, as his son fired questions at her. 

"Yes, I'm fine. Your dad wasn't lying, I promise." she responded, her voice soft. Tony took that time to glance around at the group. Steve and Bruce were looking in between the two of them, confusion written all over their face. Thor looked content surprisingly, and Clint was watching the others with a smirk on his face. Tony turned his attention back to his wife.

\---

  
"You don't need to do that for me. I'm fine." he said, but it wasn't very convincing. She ran her fingers through his hair gently a few times. She felt something warm in her chest when he closed his eyes and leaned into her touch. She stared down at him lovingly, before leaning down and pressing a kiss to his forehead. He scrunched his nose, and opened his eyes to look at her, and she could see the love he had for her reflecting in them. 

"I know. I want to. I don't want to be away from this anymore." she said quietly, and he brushed a kiss to her knuckles with a serene smile. 

"I think that would be great. I miss having you around all the time." Tony said after a few moments, and she could hear the twinge of sadness in his voice. She nodded. 

"Then it's settled. I'm done with missions." she said then, and she knew she had made the right decision when Tony graced her with a blinding smile. It was her favorite kind of smile, because it was the one he reserved for just her and Peter, the one that held no trace of the mask he kept for the media. 

"I love you." she whispered, before their quiet moment was ruined by the elevator, announcing the presence of her son and idiot best friend. Tony winked at her, before sitting back up and scooping Peter into his arms.

\---

"I know. I just...I like it better when I know you're safe." she could hear him mumble into her thighs. She runs her fingers through his hair a few times, feeling him melt into the touch. 

"I know. This is the last time, okay? And it's just a routine extraction. I'm sure it will go off without a hitch." she says, and he nods, before the door bursts open. 

"Mama! Dad!" the small voice screams, and Natasha has to hold in her laughter as Tony jumps and looks at their son incredulously. 

"I liked you better when you were quieter." he mumbled, standing up and sitting next to her on the bed instead, his attention now on the small boy walking up to them.

"Liar. You said you like my personality." the 10-year old replies, with a smirk too reminiscent of the man next to her's. She watches as Tony lets out a tired and dramatic sigh. 

"Sure, kid. How can your lovely parents be of service today?" Tony said, his hand rubbing his left arm. She narrowed her eyes slightly at him, before her lap was suddenly filled with a bouncing kid. She turned to him, keeping her face straight as he bounced in excitement. 

"Yes?" she asks calmly, causing Peter to let out a string of giggles.

"Well, Dad said you're leaving for a mission, and promised we could show you my project downstairs before you go." her son said, and she could hear the excitement in his voice. 

"Well, if Dad said so, I guess we should listen huh, bug?" she asked conspiratorially, sending her husband a wink, which he childishly returned by sticking his tongue out. Peter cheered and grabbed their hands, leading them to the lab. 

\---

"I've seen her flirt, up close. This ain't that. I hope everything is okay between you two?" Steve says, and Tony opens his mouth to snap at him to mind his own business, before something Steve said brings him up short. 

"Wait, what do you mean, 'up close'?" Tony asks, narrowing his eyes, watching as Steve's face turns red, and he quickly moves to walk away. "Wait right there Rogers! What do you mean up close?" he yells again, following after the super soldier.

\---

"That I was an Avenger. That I was anything more than the assassin they made me." she whispers, her eyes focused on her hands that were drawing absent patterns into the fabric of his shirt. 

"Tash. How could you even say something like that? You know it's not true. If you were still what they made you, you wouldn't be married to me. You wouldn't be Pete's Mom. Look me in the eyes and tell me that I'm wrong." Tony said, gently pulling her chin up to meet his eyes. She looks at him for a moment, before nodding. 

"I know. I'm sorry. I know." she says then, and he pulls her closer in his arms, her head tucked under his chin. 

"Good." he says, and they stay like that for a while, slightly swaying back and forth before Natasha pulls away slightly to look at him. 

"What did she show you?" she asks, and Tony stiffens slightly. 

"What do you mean? I was with the Hulk." Tony says lamely, trying to deflect. She raises her eyebrow at him, face unamused. He sighs, leading them back to sit on the bed, Natasha settling herself on his lap. 

"Everyone was dead. And it was my fault. I didn't do enough." he finally says, the fear from when he first saw it coming back. Natasha hums thoughtfully, her hands playing with the small hairs at the base of his neck.

"And that's why you were experimenting with Ultron." she says, the words coming out as a statement, rather than a question. He nods, burying his face in her neck. 

"I get it. And it didn't go like we wanted it to. So now we fix it." she says then, and he feels grateful that she doesn't blame him for what happened. He nods, smiling up at her before placing a gentle kiss on her lips. They kiss slowly for a few minutes, before she pulls away and nods towards the window. 

"Why don't you go help Cap chop some wood?" she says with a smirk. He sends her a fake glare before rolling his eyes and heading outside. 

\---

"JARVIS quit shutting down my work! I swear I'm going to donate you to a fast food restaurant. How do you feel about that? Pete, I swear if you send my robot into another table, I'm going to lose it." Tony says, waving a warning finger in their sons direction. As he turned he spotted Natasha at the door. 

"Tash!" Natasha feels a smile stretch across her face at the way her husband's face lit up as he saw her. She walks further into the room and stops in front of him. 

"When was the last time you guys came up for air?" she asked raising her eyebrow, while eyeing the many granola bar wrappers littering the desk. She turned back to Tony, who was giving her a guilty smile. 

"Sir and young sir have been in here the past 10 hours, and have ignored all of my reminders to eat." JARVIS cut in before Tony could say anything. She watched in amusement as he sent a glare to the nearest camera. 

"He's lying. He's just mad 'cause I told him he'd make a great drive thru worker." Tony explained, waving his hand in the camera's direction. 

"Oh certainly, sir." JARVIS replied, sarcasm laced in the robotic voice. Natasha smirked as her husband let out a tired sigh. She shook her head and turned to their son, who was still invested in his game of fetch. 

"Peter. Go upstairs and get ready for bed. I'll be up to make you some dinner in a bit." Natasha said, voice firm. Peter's head shot up and he nodded quickly, patting DUM-E's claw apologetically when the bot let out a series of sad beeps. He started heading out the door before he froze and turned around, heading for his backpack.

"I forgot. Mama, can you sign this? Our class is going to Oscorp for a field trip, and I knew Dad wouldn't sign it because of that." Peter said, bringing her a paper while sending a playful glare towards Tony. 

"Your damn right I wouldn't sign it. Why do you need to go and see mediocre science when you live in the biggest tech company's building? I can just take you downstairs and it would be better." Tony said, a look of disgust on his face as he watched Natasha sign the form. Peter just rolled his eyes and looked at Natasha. 

"Tony. Peter wants to be with his friends. Besides, it's not like anything exciting will happen, it's only Oscorp." she replied with a smirk, sending her son a wink as Tony started ranting about the other company. Peter just let out a giggle, before going upstairs. 

"Betrayed in my own home." Tony said, once Peter left. She shook her head.

"You're too dramatic." she shot back, flicking his nose. He screwed up his face, before sighing.

\---

"Hey, come here." Natasha said, once they were back on the jet and Sam and Wanda were secure. She brought Tony to the other side of the jet, helping him sit down after his disengaged his suit. He felt like he was underwater, and he couldn't get his lungs to fill with air. He looked up at Natasha in panic, and she shushed him gently. 

"Shhh, it's okay. It's over for now. We will figure out the rest. Just breathe." Tony nodded jerkily, trying to follow her instructions. His chest still felt tight, and he could feel the tears burning streaks down his face. 

"Why didn't he tell me?" he asked, his voice a whisper, breaking a few times. Natasha let out a sad sigh. 

"I don't know. I wish I did." she said softly, rubbing her hand up and down his arm, pressing a kiss gently on the crown of his head.

"Is he okay?" he barely hears the hesitant voice directed at them. 

"No. But he will be. Don't worry, bug." he hears Natasha respond quietly. He knew it must have been Peter, but he didn't have the energy to reassure him. He felt his eyes grow heavy, but he fought it, there was still so much to do. As if reading his mind, a hand settled on his shoulder. 

"We can take it from here, Dad. Just sleep. I'll protect you." he heard Peter's voice say gently. He felt his heart warm at the words from his son, before he nodded sluggishly. 

"'course you will. Love you, bug." he slurs, before sleep finally claimed him. 

\---

"Hey, come here." Natasha said softly, patting the bench next to her. Peter looked up and then to the other side of the jet. Natasha looked too, and no one seemed to be paying attention, so she nodded her ascent. Peter hopped up and sat next to her, curling into her side, like he always did. She placed her arm over his shoulder and noticed he was shaking, so she rubbed his arm. 

"Hey, he's strong. He'll be okay. He's got you to take care of him now, right?" she said softly, and she could hear Peter sniff a couple times, before he nodded. 

"See? He'll be okay." she reassured, pressing a kiss to the top of his head, feeling him calm slightly under her touch. They sat there silently for the rest of the flight, Natasha's hands moving gently through Tony's hair, as Peter fell asleep on her shoulder. 

\---

_"Daddy!" Peter squealed. He was two or three years old in the video Tony was watching in the dark. He was sitting at a small table, blocks scattered in front of him. _

_"Hey Petey-Pie." He heard his younger self say behind the camera. His younger self sat down across from the boy. _

_"Hey Pete. I know you're a bit too young to understand...but I wanted to ask your permission about something." Tony's voice said, and Peter was staring at him with his eyes wide. _

_"Daddy's sad?" Peter asked quietly, his attention now fully on Tony, blocks forgotten._

Tony could remember the hesitation he felt then, even years later. 

_"No...not exactly bubba. You remember Natasha? Daddy's friend?" Tony's voice was shaky, even over the video._

Tony let out a deep breath at the memory. 

_"Tash!" Peter agreed happily, a smile lighting up his face. The Tony behind the camera let out a fond laugh. _

_"Yeah bug, Tash. Would it be okay with you if we let her join our family?" Young Tony asked._

Tony leaned forward in his seat, eyes focused on the small Peter on the screen.

_Peter's eyebrows were drawn and his small tongue was sticking out of his mouth in thought. After a couple moments he looked up, a shy smile on his face. _

_"Like a new Mommy?" he asked, his voice small. The camera fumbled a bit, showing younger Tony's surprise at the question._

_"Y-yeah bug...if that's okay with you?" Tony's voice was hesitant still. Peter let out a small giggle. _

_"I want a new Mommy. Can Tash be my new Mommy?" Peter asked then, focus back on the blocks he was stacking in front of him. When Tony didn't answer right away, he looked up again curiously. _

_"Daddy?" his small voice asked. The camera moved suddenly again before a voice spoke up again. _

_"You know what bud? Why don't we go ask Tash if she wants to be your new Mommy?" Tony's voice asked. Peter jumped up quickly. _

_"Yeah yeah! Now! Come on!" Peter shouted, jumping a couple times before grabbing Tony's hand._

Tony reached forward and stopped the video. He rubbed his hands down his face, and let out a deep sigh. 

"Now, now. It was just getting to my favorite part." A voice spoke up behind him. He turned to see Natasha standing in the doorway, hair still mussed up from sleep. She gave him a sleepy smile, before walking forward and playing the video again. 

Tony watched her for a moment, before turning his attention back to the screen, where Tony and Peter had just found Natasha in the gym. 

_"Tash!" Peter squealed, earning the younger Natasha's attention. Her hair was longer, and a darker shade of red than it was now. She stopped her exercises to catch Peter as he launched himself in her direction. _

_"Hey, Pete. What are you guys up to?" Natasha asked, voice soft, as she tweaked Peter's nose. Peter let out a giggle, before looking towards Tony. The other man set down the camera somewhere, before walking over to the two of them, still in the frame. Natasha furrowed her eyebrows as he came closer. _

_"Tony, why are you all pale?" she asked, a hand reaching out to cup his face. Tony shook his head. _

_"Peter has a question for you." Tony said, poking his son in the stomach. The little boy nodded with a smile. Natasha's face softened as she looked at him. _

_"Okay. Peter. What is your question?" she asked softly. _

_"Will you be my new Mommy...Daddy said you could...if you wanna?" Peter asked, suddenly shy, playing with the chain of Natasha's necklace. The woman's eyes widened and snapped to Tony. _

_"Is...is this your way of proposing?" she asked once she got over her shock. She was now looking at him with a fond but exasperated look. Tony gave her a soft smirk._

_"If that's okay with you?" the man asked quietly, Peter's eyes flitting between the two, watching._

_"It's perfect. Peter, I would love to be your new Mom." Natasha said after a moment, directing her last words to the small boy still in her arms. _

_"Yay!" Peter cheered, throwing his small arms around her neck in a hug. Natasha gave Tony a small smile over the small boy's head._

\---

"Oh, bug. You did so good up there." his dad said into his hair where his head was resting. Peter beamed before pulling out of the hug and seeing the look of pure pride on his dad's face. 

"I think you did amazing too, baby." a woman said, coming up standing next to Tony. He looked at his dad with raised eyebrows, and he nodded, confirming his suspicions. 

"Mama?" he asked quietly, and the woman nodded. Peter felt a lump form in his throat, before launching into her arms for a hug as well.

"What you don't think I would have missed out and let Tony brag about getting to see you all alone, did you?" his mom whispered, pressing a kiss to his head.

"I'm so happy you guys came!" Peter said, tears in his eyes, as his parents looked down at him with different faces. He knew it was them however, because their eyes were the same.

"And if you're okay missing the tour of the Washington Monument, I already talked to your coach about letting us take you out to lunch?" his dad asked. Peter nodded. 

"That sounds perfect. What cover did you use?" Peter asked then, as they started out the door. He sent a quick wave to Ned before they left.

"I said I was a friend of Ben and May's. I had them sign a form and everything." Tony bragged as they got into the car. It had been a long time since they went out as a family, it almost never happened. Peter was going to enjoy it while it lasted. 

"How responsible of you." Peter remarked, with a laugh. His mom snorted from the passenger seat, and Peter raised his eyebrow. 

"Let me guess. It was Mama's idea?" Peter asked then, and his dad let out a defeated sigh before nodding. 

"Hey but I listened." he tried, and Peter and his mom just laughed. 

"Good for you, baby." his mom replied, taking one of Tony's hands in hers. He just shook his head fondly, before bringing her hand to his lips and kissing it. Peter smiled softly in the back. 

\---

"You don't understand. He was taken, but he wasn't the only one. He was following someone up there, someone other than Strange." she said hysterically. The tears coming faster. She stood up and started pacing, and cursing herself in Russian. She never let herself break, so why was she letting herself now? She shook her hands out, and let out a deep breath. She knew why. Because this time, it was Peter's life at stake. And she wasn't ready to face that. 

"Who else would he have followed up, Nat?" Rhodey asked, his voice hard, and she knew he already had his answer. She nodded at him, and he threw the glass cup he was holding with a curse. She watched as it shattered on the opposite wall. 

"Peter." she said with defeat, and she could see the devastation flash across everyone else's faces too. 

"Son of a bitch." she heard Steve curse.

\---

"Hey, Natasha...Nat. If you find this recording, don't post it on social media. It's gonna be a real tear-jerker." she huffs out a broken laugh, rolling her eyes. "I don't know if you're ever going to see these. I don't even know if you're...if you're still...Oh god, I hope so. Today is day 21, uh 22. You know, if it wasn't for the existential terror of staring into a void of space, I'd say I'm feeling better today. The infection's run its course, thanks to the blue meanie back there." Tony says, and Natasha's eyes roam over his figure, to see bandages on his left side. She runs her fingers through her hair, and tries to stop the flow of tears. She wasn't sure who this 'blue meanie' he was referring to was, but he still hadn't mentioned Peter, and that wasn't a good sign. 

"You'd love her. Very practical. Only a tiny bit sadistic. Some fuel cells were cracked during battle, but we figured out a way to reverse the ion charge to buy ourselves about 48 hours of time. But it's now dead in the water. We're 1000 light years from the nearest 7-11. Oxygen will run out tomorrow. And that'll be it. And Tash, I...I was really hoping to pull off one last miracle and make it back. But it looks like...well you know what it looks like. Don't feel bad about this. I mean, if you grovel for a couple of weeks, and then move on with enormous guilt. God, why can't I ever be serious? I want you to move on Tash, don't...don't let this break you. You were always stronger than me...you'll be okay. I should probably lie down, before...Please know that... when I drift off, I will think about you. Because it's always you. I love you, Tasha...and just know that I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." Tony finished, and the video cut out.

  
\---

  
"Is, uh...?" he starts, worried to ask if Natasha was still alive, when a small figure rushed up to him. He glimpsed a flash of red hair, before he was pulled into a hug. 

"Thank God." his wife said into his shoulder, and he let out a shaky sigh in relief.

"It's okay." he whispers to her, pressing a kiss to her cheek. She pulls away and looks at him, her eyes shining with tears. 

  
\---

  
"Yeah. If I can't figure out how to bring him back...Tash." his voice breaks, and he takes a couple deep breaths, before he can continue. 

"He was my whole world. And if he's gone for good. I don't...I don't know if I can keep going...unless I have a reason to. Unless I have something to live for. Like I lived for him." he finishes, looking at the tears filling her eyes. She blinks quickly, a few tears falling down her cheeks, before she nods. 

  
\---

  
"I'm sorry." he says as soon as she reaches him. She looks at him curiously, before settling in his lap once again, head tucked under his chin, fingers tracing an absent pattern on his chest.

"For what?" she asks after a bit. He lets out a shaky breath, his throat tight. 

"For having to kill your hope like that. I-if there was any way it could...you know that I...for him..." Tony chokes out and Natasha shushes him, pressing a kiss to his neck. 

"I know, baby. I know. It's okay." she whispers, tucking herself closer to his chest. He wraps his arms tightly around her as they sit there in silence. 

  
\---

  
"My baby." he felt himself sob against Peter's shoulder. 

"Dad?" Peter asked, his arms gripping Tony tighter at the sound of his sobs, but sounding a bit confused. A crash from their left broke him out of his trance and he pulled away, whipping his head around checking for danger. But all he saw was Natasha, standing on a pile of dead aliens, staring at them with a broken expression. Peter followed his gaze and made a wounded noise in the back of his throat. 

"What's going on?" he asked, turning to Tony, his eyes pained. Tony shook his head a few times, and he watched as Natasha broke into a run and almost knock Peter over with the force of her hug. 

"Hey, bug." she whispered, pulling away, pressing a kiss to his forehead. Peter gave her a confused but broken smile. 

"Hey, Mama." he whispered, and Tony felt his world realign, watching his family be reunited. 

"As good as it is to see you guys...maybe we should...get back to the fight?" Peter said finally, looking between them. Natasha winced but nodded. 

"Yes. We should. Peter Parker Stark, you be careful or I will find you and kill you myself. Understand?" she asked, not waiting for a response before pressing a kiss to Tony's cheek and running back to the battle. Peter looked at him in bewilderment. 

"That didn't even make sense. What is going on?" he asked, and Tony felt a laugh bubble out of him. 

"We'll explain later kiddo. But as your mother said, be careful. Okay?" he said, pulling Peter into one more hug. Peter nodded, and they both launched back into the fight. 

  
\---

  
"Did we win?" Peter asked, clutching the hand that had been on Tony's arm. Tony looked around at everyone, who all seemed to be battered but alive, watching as Thanos and his army faded to dust. 

"Yeah kid. We won." he said, a smile crossing his face. Peter let out a delirious laugh, before falling to the ground dramatically.

"Yay. Go team. Does anyone have any orange slices?" he asked, causing the rest of the group to let out a string of laughs. 

  
  
\---

  
"You guys better be careful with her nickname though. You call me bug...and I turned into one." Peter said, giving them a wink, before taking his sister gently out of Natasha's arms and walking over to the rest of the heroes. Natasha let out a snort as he walked away. 

"I sometimes can't believe he's back." she whispered. "It doesn't feel real sometimes." Tony wrapped her up in his arms. 

"I know. But it's over. Part of the journey is the end. But...if you're lucky, in that end, you can find a new beginning." Tony said, rocking them back and forth as they both watched the heroes fawn over their daughter. They watched silently, before Natasha elbowed him gently, extracting herself from his arms. 

"You're such a sap." she said, grabbing his hand and leading him down the steps. He shrugged, but followed her. 

"Hey you think peanut is a safe nickname...or do you think that will doom her into fighting crime while dressed like a peanut?" Tony asked hypothetically, earning a playful glare from Natasha, as they reached the rest of his family. 

"Let's get this party started!" he announces, winding his arms around Peter and Natasha, who is now holding Maria.

And Tony smiles, his world finally safe in his arms. 

  
\---

THE IRONWIDOW FAMILY WILL RETURN

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed my favorite moments of this beautiful family. Leave a comment of your guys' favorite moments too!!
> 
> Just to repeat:   
I decided to continue this story in a few different ways. I still haven't decided whether or not I will do FFH, but I will add to this whenever I come up with ideas for either snippets from the movies I didn't originally include, or little fast forwards, and also flashbacks to Peter's childhood or when Nat and Tony met. 
> 
> If you are interested in any of these let me know! Also if you have any requests, I'd love to hear them!
> 
> The story will show up as complete, but don't worry, this story is far from over. 
> 
> Love you guys!! Leave a comment!
> 
> Also: I had some questions on the last chapter about who died on Vormir. The team went back in time to the planet Thanos went to right after the snap and grabbed the gauntlet then, with all the stones already there. That way no one had to die on Vormir. I didn't understand why the movie didn't go to a time when all the stones were already gathered, so I decided to do it that way. Hope that makes sense!


	19. Post-Post Credit Scene-Happily Ever After

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's a post credit scene that struck me at like 3 a.m. and I had to write immediately. 
> 
> Hope you enjoy!
> 
> As I said on the last chapter, this story is far from over and I will be adding snippets of the family whenever I think of something. I'm still brainstorming if FFH will work in this universe so stay tuned. If you have requests for snippets from the movies I didn't originally include, flashbacks, or flashforwards leave them in the comments!

"Hey little miss." Tony said softly to the infant staring up at him with wide eyes. He picked her up gently and walked her out into the living room, the house silent. 

"You wanna help Daddy with his chores? Let Mama get a few more hours of sleep?" Tony murmured quietly, smiling when Maria let out a tiny giggle. He buckled her into the baby carrier on his stomach and made sure she was secure, before slipping outside quietly. He took in a deep breath, feeling content as he watched the sun slowly start to rise, turning the sky a pale pink. 

"Come on M." he said, squeezing her onesie covered foot, earning a kick in return. He walked over to the alpaca enclosure, where Gerald was waiting, no doubt for his food. But before Tony could start feeding him, he noticed a ring of red around the animals mouth. He groaned, walking up to Gerald. 

"You look me in the eyes and tell me you didn't eat Tasha and Pepper's berries. Tell me you didn't." Tony groaned again as the animal just stared at him seemingly innocent. 

"Should I be worried you're talking to an alpaca?" a soft voice came from behind him. He jumped a little, turning around as Steve approached him an eyebrow raised in question. 

"Warn a guy, Cap." Tony muttered, turning back to glare at his pet. Steve chuckled before stopping beside him, letting Maria grab one of his large fingers in her small hands. 

"I was on my morning run. Wanna tell me why you're out so early...yelling at innocent animals?" he asked then, and Tony scoffed. 

"His name is Gerald. And he's not innocent. He keeps eating the berries that Pep and Tasha planted. He knows he's not supposed to eat them." Tony said, pointing an accusing finger at Gerald. 

"He's an alpaca, Tony. I don't think he knows." Steve replied with a laugh, attention still on the smiling Maria. 

"Oh, he knows. He's evil. And if he's not careful, I'm going to donate him to one of those petting zoos. The ones where children get all handsy and pull his hair." Tony said bitterly, rubbing his thumb along Maria's toes. Steve let out another laugh. 

"How much sleep did you get last night, Tony?" Steve asked instead, walking over to the hay and easily picking up the right amount and throwing it over the fence to Gerald. Tony scowled.

"That's not important." he replied, turning around to head back to the house, Steve falling in step with him. 

"Yes it is. You sleeping okay?" Steve asked, pure concern in his voice. Tony stopped on the porch and sat down on the swing Clint had built them, Steve joining him. 

"Yeah. I was just up working on the designs for the guest cabin. That way if you guys decide you don't want to head back to the city, you'll have your own place." Tony said, avoiding looking at Steve, who was staring at him thoughtfully. 

"That sounds great, Tony." Steve said softly, and Tony just sniffed and sent him a nod. They were silent for a moment, letting the sun rise, Maria making soft cooing sounds as she chewed on his finger. 

"Why don't I make us some breakfast? I'm sure this little munchkin is ready to eat." Steve broke the silence, standing up and offering a scarred hand to Tony. They all had matching scars somewhere on their hands, because of the stones. Tony smiled. 

"Sounds great, Cap. How about waffles? Pete loves waffles." Tony said, following Steve into the house. 

"Well if Peter loves waffles, then waffles there will be." Steve answered with a laugh, helping Tony settle Maria into her high chair. 

"Go sit. I can manage feeding her some mushed bananas." Steve said with a wink, and Tony shrugged sitting down at the island, watching Steve handle his daughter with the utmost care. 

\---

Natasha woke up, on her own for the first time in a while. Normally there was a certain little girl who was screaming for breakfast around this time. She got up, looking into the nursery to find it empty, but knowing she was probably with Tony. She walked out into the kitchen, unable to hide her snort at the scene. 

Peter was sitting on the island, happily munching on a huge tower of waffles. Bucky was perched on the stool next to him spraying an obscene amount of whipped cream on his on his waffles, his tongue poking out in determination. Peter was watching in awe. Steve was cleaning up a messy Maria, while Tony was...Tony was dead asleep on the other side of the island, his face resting on his arms. 

She leaned up against the wall and watched the scene play out. Steve had finished cleaning up the baby, and had got her out of her chair, her small figure now resting on his hip, when he finally turned around. His face quickly turned exasperated as he took in Bucky's whipped cream tower and he let out a tired sigh. 

"Buck. What have I told you about drowning your food in sugar?" he asked, his voice strained with fondness under the reprimand. Bucky looked up, his expression flat, and shrugged. 

"I was used as a Hydra weapon for 70 years Steve. I think I have earned my right to eat as much sugar as I want." he said deadpan, before turning back to his food. Steve let out a strangled groan, rolling his eyes. Peter just snorted. 

"How many times have you used that one?" he asked, swallowing his last bite of waffle before hopping off the counter and placing his plate in the sink. 

"Never." Bucky claimed and at Steve's glare he rolled his eyes, "Every time he makes waffles." he says instead with a shrug and Peter lets out a snort, before giving the soldier a high five. She chose this moment to finally make her presence known. 

"Now Barnes. You better not be teaching my kid bad manners." she said, softly waking Tony up, pressing a kiss to his forehead as he blinked tiredly, before moving to take Maria from Steve. 

"I would never teach Maria bad manners. Peter however...is too far gone." Bucky said with a smirk, earning a slap on his arm from Steve and Peter both. She rolled her eyes at the bickering that started, before turning her attention to her daughter. 

"Hey, peanut. How'd you sleep last night?" she asked, directing the last question mostly to Tony, who was still waking up. He blinked blearily over at her before shaking his head a bit with a yawn. 

"She slept mostly through the night. Was awake when I had to feed Gerald, so I took her with me. Wanted to let you sleep." he said, biting back another yawn. She hummed thoughtfully, swaying back and forth to please the baby in her arms. 

"Looks like you're the one who needed some sleep." she said instead, and Tony rolled his eyes. 

"I was coerced. By the Popsicle over there." Tony replied with a glare sent over his shoulder at Steve. He moved to the coffee machine, and she sent a grateful look over to the super soldier, who nodded at her with a smile. 

She sat back and listened to her family, Peter and Bucky bickering over what the best pizza topping was, both trying to get Steve on their side. She smiled when "Come on, Uncle Steve, you know I'm right!" slipped out of Peter's mouth, because Steve let out the brightest smile. She knew Bucky had lost the second that name came out of Peter's mouth. Bucky seemed to realize it too because he groaned, and let his head fall to the table, but Steve had his hand open to cushion the fall. 

"This is nice." Tony whispered, coming to stand beside her, smiling over at the chaos.

"Yeah. It is." she replied, smiling when a kiss was pressed softly to her cheek, then repeated on Maria's. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed! Leave a comment!
> 
> As I said on the last chapter, this story is far from over and I will be adding snippets of the family whenever I think of something. I'm still brainstorming if FFH will work in this universe so stay tuned. If you have requests for snippets from the movies I didn't originally include, flashbacks, or flashforwards leave them in the comments!
> 
> Thank you to all of you guys who constantly leave me comments. You guys are the only reason I got to the end. Thank you all for your support and reading, I can't believe so many people liked my story. I hope you'll all stick around for the rest. <3


	20. Marvel Short: Wedding Vows

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I've decided to call the little snippets of life, Marvel shorts. Kinda like Pixar shorts. lol. 
> 
> Here are Tony and Nat's vows. I might write a whole wedding scene later, but this came to my brain and I felt like I should show it to you guys immediately...so here you go!
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> Based on the song Turning Page by Sleeping At Last.

Turning Page by Sleeping At Last

\---

_"I've waited a hundred years_   
_But I'd wait a million more for you_   
_Nothing prepared me for_   
_What the privilege of being yours would do_

_If I had only felt the warmth within your touch_   
_If I had only seen how you smile when you blush_   
_Or how you curl your lip when you concentrate enough_

_Well I would have known_   
_What I was living for all along_   
_What I've been living for_

_Your love is my turning page_   
_Where only the sweetest words remain_   
_Every kiss is a cursive line_   
_Every touch is a redefining phrase_

_I surrender who I've been for who you are_   
_For nothing makes me stronger than your fragile heart_   
_If I had only felt how it feels to be yours_

_Well I would have known_   
_What I've been living for all along_   
_What I've been living for_

_Though we're tethered to the story we must tell_   
_When I saw you, well I knew we'd tell it well_   
_With a whisper we will tame the vicious seas_   
_Like a feather bringing kingdoms to their knees"_

_\---_

_Tony:_

  
"Our story isn't a normal one. I'm a hot mess who happens to own a pretty successful business. You...well you know used to be a spy...and still are a spy. But now you're a spy for the good guys. When I first saw you at that gala, I could tell by the look in your eyes that you had a story, and I wanted to be a part of it. I knew that our stories would converge, and they would intertwine. And intertwine they did. It started out rough, but with every kiss, with every wall broken down, it became the story I will treasure forever. I used to think I had my whole life planned out, me and Peter against the world. But I would give that up, a million times, for the privilege of being yours. I know with the lives we lead it won't be easy. But I know it will be beautiful. And I wouldn't want to do it with anyone but you. I've waited this long to find you, and I would wait forever, just to be yours. You are the love of my life, and ever since I met you, I knew that I was living to find you. I love you."

_Natasha:_

"Nothing prepared me for meeting you. I was there on a mission, and you swept in and turned my whole world upside down. I didn't trust it for the longest time, not sure how someone so gentle could love someone so rough...so broken. But you were so warm, so gentle with me. You showed me how I could be something to someone. And I learned how much I could love you. Like when you smile a certain way when you blush, or when your lip curls when your concentrating really hard. You showed me how easy it could be to let someone in. I always thought letting people in made you weak, but you showed me how strong it could make me. Nothing makes me stronger than having you by my side. You and Peter, who have slowly become my whole world. With you guys, I know I can do anything. And I know being yours, being a part of your family will change me in ways I'll never know. But I would trade who I am for who you are, for who you can help me to be. I love you...more than anything."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did you think?? Remember to leave any suggestions or requests for future snippets!
> 
> Thank you for reading!


	21. Marvel Short: Ned

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Idea from @FandomMenagerie
> 
> This is Ned's reaction to Natasha being Peter's mom, after they revealed their marriage in Homecoming. 
> 
> Hope you enjoy!
> 
> And leave more ideas for future stories!

Peter looked down at his phone as they piled into the elevator after the press conference. Ned was calling him. His dad peered over his shoulder and snorted. 

"Good luck with that one, kid." he said, and Peter scrunched his eyebrows. 

"What do you mean?" Peter asked, and his dad laughed, earning a slap on the arm from his mother. She rolled her eyes and turned to him. 

"He knows about your dad right? Well he just found out your dad has been married to Black Widow this entire time." his mom explained slowly and Peter felt his eyes widen. 

"Oh." he managed and Tony snorted again. 

"Yeah, oh." he snickered. His mom glared at his dad, and flicked his nose with her finger, earning a shocked yelp from Tony. 

"Hey!" she shook her head. 

"Stop making fun of our son. And Peter. Answer your phone already." she said, as the elevator finally reached the penthouse floor. Peter nodded, walking over to the couch and pressing accept. 

"Hey, Ned..." he answered and there was only silence on the other line for a moment, but his enhanced hearing picked up on Ned's breathing. "Ned?" he tried again. He heard an intake of breath, and he steeled himself. 

"You mean to tell me. That the Black Widow. Has been married to your dad. This entire time???" Ned asked, voice squeaking with volume. Peter winced and pulled the phone away from his ear a bit, earning a snort from his dad. He aimed a half hearted kick at the man before turning his attention back to Ned. 

"Um...yes?" he answered, and Ned let out a strangled noise.

"So what is she? You're step-mom?" Ned finally asked once he got control over himself. Peter scrunched his nose. 

"I guess technically yeah. I never knew my real mom...so she is my mom? I mean I've called her mom since I was like...2?" Peter said, as Ned continued to make choking noises on the other line. 

"BLACK WIDOW IS YOUR MOM AND YOU DIDN'T TELL ME?" Ned screamed, and it could be heard throughout the room, despite the phone not being on speaker. This earned a raised eyebrow from his mom, and he shrugged helplessly. 

"Yeah?" he tried weakly. He heard Ned huff out a laugh, and there was a couple moments of silence. 

"Peter. What is your life? Honestly. First Tony Stark. The Tony Stark is your dad. Then you become a super-hero and can like stick to walls....and now you're telling me Black Widow. The Black Widow. Is your mom?" Ned rambled, and Peter just stared hopelessly at the ceiling as he listened, ignoring the snickering coming from his dad. 

"Yes Ned. Black Widow is my mom. Can we stop talking about this now?" he asked pleadingly, sending another glare to his dad. Ned let out a sad sigh. 

"I guess. But I want you to tell me everything later. Got it?" Ned asked, and Peter let out a temporary sigh of relief. 

"Yeah Ned. Later. Bye." He said, hanging up the phone. He let out a strangled groan and tossed his phone onto the floor. 

"So. I assume he took it well." his dad piped up, voice falsely innocent. Peter sat up and sent him a glare. 

"Shut up. This is all your fault." he said, and his dad let out a startled laugh. 

"What? How is this my fault? Tasha? Wait, why are you laughing at me? How is this my fault?" his dad asked, looking between the two of them. His mom was watching them with silent amusement dancing in her eyes, and Peter pointed a finger at his dad.

"Because you had to go and be Tony Stark. And then as if that wasn't enough...you had to go and marry a super spy." Peter explained pettily, motioning to his mother, who sent him a smirk. Tony spluttered for a moment, looking between his wife and his son. His mom gave him a shrug, and he deflated. 

"I mean. I guess you're right. I did do that." Tony said finally, laughter in his voice. "Sorry about it." he continued, with a humorous glint in his eye. Peter scoffed playfully. 

"Yeah you sound so broken up about it. Now if you'll excuse me, I must go scream into a pillow for twenty minutes. I will be back." Peter said dramatically, standing up. His parents didn't even blink an eye at his words, used to his antics. His mom just nodded, and held up her hand. 

"Make sure you come up for air every few seconds. Wouldn't want you to suffocate yourself." she said, face serious. Peter just rolled his eyes and sent a wave over his shoulder. 

"You guys suck!" he shouted. Hearing laughter coming from behind him. 

"Love you too, bug!" his dad shouted, and he let out a small snort of laughter. Ned was right, what was his life? 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked it!
> 
> I have a couple small stories in the works. And then I'm going to start brainstorming a prequel type chapter for when Tony and Nat met if anyone is interested!
> 
> Thank you for reading! Please leave a comment telling me what you think or ideas for what you want to see!!


	22. Marvel Short: Maria

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I was going to split all these up into their own separate chapters, but I felt bad taking so long to update so you get all of them at once. 
> 
> This is kinda a combination of all the Maria ideas you guys gave me so shout out to; @SapphiRubyCrys, @LittleMsStark3000, @atalantaleandra, @Just a reader, and others for all their continuous support and ideas! This is just a mash up of all their ideas, so I hope they and everyone else enjoys!!
> 
> Also sorry again for the long wait for another chapter, my life just got crazy. I hope you enjoy this AND stick around to the end note for a fun announcement! I hope you enjoy and please leave a comment about what you liked and maybe what else you'd like to see!!
> 
> TW: mentions of anxiety and depression, also nightmares, nothing terrible just want you to be prepared!

"She's beautiful, Tony." Pepper said from the hospital bed, looking over at him as he was holding his new baby. He looked up and smiled at his best friend, not knowing how to express how grateful he was for her giving them this opportunity. Pepper seemed to know what he wanted to say though, and smiled. 

"You deserved it. Both of you, and I was more than happy to help." she said softly, and Tony nodded swallowing the lump in his throat. He walked over to Pepper and placed a soft kiss on her forehead. 

"Thank you, Pep." he whispered, and she gave him a small smile and a kiss on the cheek in return. 

"Where's Nat? She left pretty quick after the baby was delivered." Pepper asked, watching as he settled the baby back into the bassinet, before sitting in the chair beside it, his eyes never leaving his daughter's. He watched her quietly for a minute before looking up at his friend with a sigh. 

"She went to get Peter. But...I also think she was scared. I barely convinced her to be here for the birth." Tony said thoughtfully, his eyes unfocused as if his mind was somewhere else. 

"Why would she be scared?" Pepper asked after a few moments, and Tony shook his head taking a deep breath. 

"She wasn't there for this part with Peter. And this time, it's her child too, not just mine, and I think she's scared of accepting something this good and precious for herself. Part of her still thinks she doesn't deserve it, too much red in her ledger or something like that." Tony said, a sad smile on his face as he looked back at his daughter. 

"She knows she deserves this, probably more than anyone, right?" Pepper asked softly, smiling at the picture of father and daughter in front of her. Tony shrugged. 

"I don't know. I'm trying to get her to see. Hopefully when she gets back and holds her, she'll realize it." he said hopefully. At that moment there was a soft knock on the door, before it opened revealing his son, looking shy. Tony felt a wide smile spread across his face and he walked over to meet Peter. 

"Hey bug. You wanna meet your new sister?" he asked, on the verge of tears at the thought that his son was actually here to meet his sister, when they never thought he would. Peter gave a timid nod, and Tony walked over and wrapped his arm around his son and lead him over to the bassinet. Peter let out a small gasp as he looked down at the bundled baby. 

"She's so cute, Dad." Peter whispered, reaching and rubbing his thumb over his sister's small hand. Tony smiled, before looking at the doorway and seeing Natasha standing there, eyes wide. He ruffled Peter's hair a bit before walking over to his wife. 

"Why don't you come hold her, and we can tell Pete what we named her?" Tony asked softly, and his wife looked up at him, a strange vulnerability in her eyes. 

"Tony..." she whispered, but he shushed her and grabbed her hand, leading her over to their children. He let go of her hand to gently lift his daughter into his arms, and he turned handing her gently to Natasha, who had no choice but to hold her. Once she had their daughter in her arms he stepped back and watched her warily. Natasha stood there frozen for a minute before she finally looked down at their baby. 

He watched as his wife's eyes filled with wonder, and then with tears, as she stared down at their daughter. She looked up as a tear traveled down her cheek. He reached up and gently wiped the tear and caressed her cheek. She looked up at him with the most beautiful smile he had ever seen. He smiled softly back and pressed a kiss to her forehead, before leaning down and pressing one to his daughter's head as well. 

"So...what's her name?" Peter asked quietly, not wanting to break the moment, as he stood to the side watching his parents. Tony let out a small laugh before pulling his son to his side. 

"Maria Natalia Stark." Tony replied, and Natasha sent him a small smile, before passing the baby off to a startled Peter. 

"I love it. Hi Maria...I'm your big brother. It's so good to meet you." Peter whispered, looking down at his sister with a fond smile. Tony felt his breath hitch in his throat a bit at the thought that this almost didn't happen. He felt Natasha squeeze his hand, and she looked at him knowingly. He lifted her hand up to his lips and pressed a kiss to her hand. 

"We deserve this, right?" Natasha whispered quietly, for only him to hear. He looked over to where his son was smiling down at his daughter and he smiled too. 

"Yeah, we do." Tony replied, pulling her into his arms as they both watched their children begin to bond, fulfilling a dream they never thought would be possible. 

\---

A few months later

\---

  
"Come on Maria...say Daddy." Tony chanted, watching his daughter stare up at him blankly. Peter snorted. 

"I think staring at her is really helping." he commented, earning a glare from his dad. Peter shrugged. 

"Hey. Your first word was Pep...so I need to redeem myself." Tony mumbled, and Peter sat up, furrowing his eyebrows. 

"My first word was Pep...why would my first word be Pep?" Peter asked, and Tony glanced at him quickly with a shrug. 

"I was a single dad. I panicked a lot...and I called Pepper way more than I would like to admit." he answered and Peter let out a small huff of laughter. 

"What about Mom? Didn't you know her then?" he asked, walking over and sitting next to his dad, joining him in watching Maria wiggle around. 

"Yeah, but she was still doing secret agent stuff...and...it's all a bit complicated to be honest." Tony rambled, attention still fixed on Maria. Peter nodded absently, before grabbing one of Maria's hands and waving it around. 

"Aren't you the cutest baby in the whole world?" Peter cooed, smiling brightly. Maria's eyes followed him and she gave him a gummy smile. When he let go, her smile vanished, and she lifted both her hands in his direction. 

"Pee" was the next sound that came out of her mouth, and Peter gaped. Tony just groaned and looked over at him with a glare. When Peter didn't move to pick her up, Maria squirmed some more, hands still reaching for him. 

"Pee." she said again, and Peter let out a laugh, before scooping her up and cuddling her against his chest. He looked over at his dad with a smirk. Even though it sounded more like pee rather than Peter, he still counted this as a victory. 

"Looks like you're 0 for 2, old man." Peter laughed. Tony just let his head fall back in defeat and stared despondently at the ceiling. He turned when he heard footsteps coming down the stairs. 

"What's wrong with your dad?" his mom asked, entering the room, a perfectly sculpted eyebrow raised. Peter grinned. 

"Maria said her first word." he answered, and his mom smiled in surprise.

"And it wasn't Daddy, I'm guessing?" she asked, playfully poking Tony in the forehead. The man grumbled and swatted her hand away bitterly. 

"Nope. It was Peter." he answered, sending a betrayed look towards his daughter. His mom let out a soft laugh, and pulled his dad in for a hug. 

"It's okay, baby. At least it's not Pep." she teased, and Tony let out another groan, and burying his face in her shoulder. She sent Peter a wink over Tony's head. 

"It's okay, Dad. I'll teach her Mama next. Then mayyybe, we'll get around to Daddy." he said with a smirk, but his dad just grumbled more into his mom's shoulder. Natasha rolled her eyes, but kissed the top of Tony's head. 

"Okay. Enough teasing, both of you. It's time for Maria's nap anyway." she said, pushing Tony off of her, and taking Maria out of his arms. Tony was just sitting there, glaring at Peter, and Natasha ran her fingers through his hair as she passed. 

"Hey, when I get back, you two better have made up. Or you're both sleeping with Gerald." she said playfully, walking up the stairs.

"You heard the lady. Let's go get the kitchen ready." Tony said, standing up. Peter gave him a curious look, but followed. 

"Why?" Peter asked as they walked to the kitchen.

"Because Bucky and Steve are coming over for dinner. And the kitchen needs to be able to make enough food for three super metabolisms." Tony replied. They worked together silently before they heard the front door open 

\---

"Thank you for dinner Tony." Steve said, and Bucky nodded. 

"Yeah man, if I had known you could cook better than Stevie here, I'd come here more often." Bucky joked, earning himself a shove from Steve. Tony laughed, standing up and grabbing plates off the table. 

"I already have one super metabolism to feed, thank you very much, I don't need another." He replied, smiling when Steve walked over to help him clean up the dishes. He was elbow deep in dishes when Maria started crying from her swing. He turned around to see Bucky wave Natasha off with a smile, as he went over and gently lifted Maria out of her seat, shushing her quietly. 

"He's been talking about this dinner all week." he looked over with a start to see Steve leaning on the sink next to him. He raised his eyebrow before turning back to the dishes motioning for Steve to dry. The other man picked up a dish towel with a small smile. 

"So Bucky secretly loves my company huh?" Tony asks with a smirk, and Steve chuckles, taking a dish from his hand to dry. 

"I would deny it, but yeah. You and your family. It makes him feel...at home I guess? Being around a family again. He kept asking me if I got the day right from the moment we planned this." Steve replied, and Tony looked over in shock before shaking his head. 

"I had no idea. You guys can stop by whenever you want, you know that right? That's why you live in that amazing mansion I built you up the road?" Tony joked, never one to let the feeling talks linger. Steve rolled his eyes, and Tony knew that the other man knew what he was doing. Tony handed Steve the last dish before turning around and leaning on the sink. 

"Yeah, we know. At least I do." Steve replied, turning around as well. Tony furrowed his eyebrows at the sentence, turning his attention to Steve. 

"What do you mean?" Tony asked quietly, and Steve just shrugged, attention fixed on Bucky and Maria. 

"Buck...he uh. He still feels guilty...about your parents." Steve paused and glanced at Tony quickly before continuing. "He doesn't feel like it's right to be around your kids when he stole their grandparents from them." Steve finished. Tony remained silent, waiting to see if the feeling of grief and betrayal would hit him like it used to at the mention of his parents, but it didn't. 

He turned to see Bucky holding Maria high in the air before bringing her down and blowing a gentle raspberry on her cheek, earning a cute giggle from the baby. Peter was sitting nearby, videoing the whole thing. And when he looked at Natasha, he was not surprised to see her attention on him, as if she knew the nature of his and Steve's conversation. He could tell she was asking him if he needed her to step in. He shook his head minutely, letting her know he was okay, and she turned her attention back on their kids with a soft smile. 

He finally looked over to Steve, who was watching Bucky with a fond look on his face. 

"When I first found out...I was angry. I hated him...for what he did. For taking my mom away from me. Then when I figured out what HYDRA did to him...I was still angry but I knew it wasn't him. I was mad for a while...but..." he trailed off, and Steve watched him silently, waiting for him to continue. He had a resigned look on his face, like he figured Tony was going to hold on to that anger. 

"But Cap. When I lost Peter...it put everything into perspective for me." Steve looked shocked that he was bringing it up, but stayed silent, his eyes wide. "I realized that none of that mattered to me, because my family has never been with my parents, at least not for a long time. Peter and Nat were my family and I had lost Peter...and that hurt more than losing my parents ever did. He is my whole world. Maria too. And while my mother would have loved them, I don't think I would have wanted Howard anywhere near either of them." Tony said, and Steve looked down guiltily at that and Tony nudged him. 

"Long story short, I harbor no ill feelings, towards either of you, because you both helped me get him back and keep him safe. And I know you _and_ Bucky would do anything to keep them both safe. Besides who needs boring old grandparents...when they can have a couple 100 year old strange uncles?" Tony said, ending with the joke directed at Bucky as well, earning a surprised laugh from Steve. He turned away pretending he couldn't see Steve wiping tears from his eyes. He met Bucky's eyes across the room, and he gave the man a smile, which the man tentatively returned. 

Tony pushed himself away from the counter, clapping his hands together. 

"Okay. Even though you live up the road, I think a movie night slumber party is in order, who's in?" Tony said, watching as Peter smiled in excitement, turning to Steve and Bucky, who both looked hesitant. 

"Come on Uncle Steve." Peter begged, and he watched as the hesitance left Steve's face in an instant. 

"As long as Bucky's in?" Steve asked, looking at Bucky. He watched as Peter got a thoughtful look on his face, before it was replaced with a small smirk. 

"What do you say, Uncle Bucky?" Peter asked innocently, as if he didn't know the effect those words would have. Tony let out a small laugh, wrapping his arm around Natasha's waist, as he watched Bucky's face turn white with shock. Steve was also a bit shocked, before he recovered, trying to avoid laughing. Bucky looked straight at Tony, as if asking permission to be called an Uncle. Tony nodded with a smile. Bucky looked relieved, smiling down at Maria who was still babbling in his arms. 

"That sounds great." he replied softly, earning a cheer from Peter, which caused Maria to giggle. 

\---

Tony shot up with a gasp, his breaths stuttering in his chest. 

"Stark? Tony, you alright?" he heard a voice ask. He turned to see Bucky staring at him, a curious look on his face. He shook his head wildly, eyes flying frantically over the room, searching. When he couldn't find what he was looking for, his breath hitched in his throat, and he felt a sob leave his mouth. 

"Tony?" he heard distantly, but he couldn't pull his attention away from the grief that was clutching at his lungs. "Steve...Steve wake up. Help him...I don't..." "I'll talk to him, you go get Nat." He could hear the voices around him speaking, but they felt far away as he struggled to stop the sobs wracking his body. 

"Tony, can you tell me what's wrong?" he could tell it was Steve talking to him now, and he tried to get some words out, but he couldn't get them past the lump in his throat. He shook his head frantically, before soft hands covered his face and a familiar perfume filled his nose. 

"Hey love, can you breath for me?" Natasha's gentle voice filled his ears, and he felt another sob wrack his body as he reached out blindly and wrapped himself around his wife. 

"Shhh. Okay, baby...I've got you. We're all okay. We're in our cabin home, as you like to call it. Bucky and Steve are here, you invited them to stay over. I just put Maria to sleep, and Peter-" he let out a broken sob at the name, silently begging for her not to confirm what he knew was true. That his son was dead. His baby boy, was gone. "Okay, okay. I know what's going on. Peter's safe. I sent him to bed when I put Maria down. He's alive, he's okay. Bucky is going to get him now okay, and you can see for yourself. Just breathe, love." Natasha continued, and Tony clenched his eyes shut tighter, hoping more than anything that her words were true. 

"Dad?" he heard a sleepy voice say after a few moments. He shook his head into Natasha's shoulders, not knowing if he was making up that voice in his mind. He felt an hand tug on his sleeve gently, and he pulled away reluctantly, looking through teary eyes to see his son staring at him with eyes red from sleep. 

"Petey-" he choked out, and he felt skinny arms envelop him and he let out a few shaky sobs. 

"It's okay, Dad. I'm alright. You saved me, remember? I'm okay. You gotta breathe though, okay?" Peter's soft voice filled his ears, and he nodded, trying his best to follow his son's breathing. After a while he felt himself calm down, and he pulled away, running his hands over his face, as if that could hide the evidence of his crying. He looked around the room and only saw Natasha and Peter sitting close by watching him carefully. Natasha seemed to read his mind, because she spoke up softly. 

"They went to check on Maria." she said softly, taking his hand in hers. 

"Is she okay?" he asked, his voice hoarse. She nodded, rubbing her thumb over his knuckles. 

"Yeah, she just started fussing, they seemed to have calmed her down." she responded, and he nodded to himself, finally turning to look at his son. 

"I'm sorry, bug." he whispered, watching as a confused look passed Peter's face, his nose scrunched. 

"What are you sorry for?" Peter asked, looking over to his mom, who gave him a sad smile. 

"I-for scaring you?" Tony said, the words coming out like a question. Peter looked at him for a moment before rolling his eyes. 

"You're ridiculous. I'm not even going to dignify that with a response. How are you feeling?" Peter asked, and Tony looked over at Natasha in surprise, and she just shrugged her shoulders at their son's words. 

"I'm tired." Tony responded, and Peter nodded as if expecting that answer. He stood up, brushing off nonexistent dirt, before offering Tony his hand. 

"Come on, we'll have a sleepover in my room." Peter said, still looking at him expectantly. Tony felt a rush of love fall over him as he stared at his son, and he smiled. 

"Yeah. Sounds good." he said, reaching up and taking Peter's hand. 

\---

Tony pressed a quick kiss to her head before he followed Peter out of the room, shoulders slumped with exhaustion. She leaned back against the couch with a sigh, taking a moment to collect herself, before she heard two sets of heavy footsteps re-enter the room. 

"You okay Nat?" Steve's voice broke the silence, and she opened her eyes to see the two soldiers settle in front of her, looks of concern on their faces. She sat up and ran her fingers through her hair, and nodded.

"Yeah. It's just hard sometimes...to see him like that." she replied softly, and the two men nodded sympathetically. 

"How often...if you don't mind my asking, but how often does that happen?" Bucky asked softly, his voice polite. She shrugged. 

"Um, it depends. It hasn't happened that much lately, but when it does it's bad. Peter helps a lot though. When he wasn't...you know here...it was a lot worse. He wouldn't even get out of bed some days, so even if it's hard now, it's better than that." she said quietly, her eyes fixed on her hands. 

"I'm so sorry Nat." Steve whispered, squeezing her knee if comfort. She placed her hand over his with a smile. 

"Thanks Steve. But it's okay, we'll get through it. It's going to take some time to be okay again. Losing your son isn't something you can just walk away from unscathed, even if we got him back." she said with a sad smile. Steve nodded, but Bucky just furrowed his brows in concern. 

"How are you doing with it, Natalia?" he asked, eyes boring into hers. She sighed. 

"I'm doing okay. I don't have nightmares like Tony. It's more like I forget he's back and it's like there's this weight on my heart and then when he walks into the room, it feels like I can't breathe. He can always tell, though, and then he'll follow me around for hours afterwards. It's hard...but I'm okay. I mostly just worry about him and Tony." she replied honestly, knowing she needed to talk about it to someone. 

"I think they are going to be just fine, especially with someone as strong as you with them. Now why don't you go join them and get some sleep? We'll listen for Maria for you." Steve said, helping her stand up. She looked over at them for a minute before nodding gratefully. 

"Thank you. I don't know what we would do without you." she said, pressing a kiss to both their cheeks, before heading up the stairs to Peter's room. 

She opened the door softly, and let a smile cross her face at what she saw. Tony was leaning up against the pillows, eyes trained out the window, as his hand worked it's way through Peter's curls. Peter, was dead asleep, his head pillowed on his dad's chest, breathing softly. She closed the door, earning Tony's attention as he flashed her a tired smile. 

"Hey, love." he whispered as she walked over. She smiled at him, before settling in on his other side, his free hand automatically finding her hair as well. 

"How's he doing?" she asked quietly, brushing some of the bangs off her son's forehead. Tony smiled. 

"He fell asleep as soon as we got settled, the little stink." Tony whispered fondly. 

"And you? How are you doing?" she asked after a few moments of silence. Tony glanced her way quickly, before returning his eyes to Peter's face, shrugging softly. 

"I'm okay. I...I thought since he was back the dreams would go away." he replied, voice so quiet she could barely hear it. She nodded carefully.

"It's not going to be that easy." she said, and he let out another sigh before nodding. 

"I know. Where's Maria?" he asked then, changing the subject. She thought about pressing the topic more, but decided against it.

"Steve and Bucky said they'd listen for her and come get me if she needed something." she replied. Tony smiled, before pressing a kiss to her forehead. 

"I knew it was a good idea to keep them around." he replied, his voice growing thick with sleep. She glanced up to see him fighting to keep his eyes open, now that he was relaxed. 

"Yep. You're a certified genius, honey." she responded quietly, earning a huff of laughter from the man before his eyes finally closed and he drifted off to sleep. 

"I love you both so much, my beautiful boys." she whispered, pressing a kiss to both their heads, before she too settled down to sleep. 

\---

4 years later

\---

"Maria! Your brother's here!" Tony shouted up the stairs, and he smiled when he heard an excited squeal, followed by the pattering of small feet on the wood floors. Tony shook his head fondly, waiting patiently on the stairs, his face stretching into a smile at the bright green eyes that met his. 

"Come on, Daddy. Petey's here!" she whined, grabbing his hand and trying to drag him to the door. He let out a huff of laughter, but allowed the small hands to pull him to the front door. He swept her up into his arms once they reached the porch, stopping her from running to the still moving car. 

"PETEY!" Maria shrieked in his ear, causing him to wince. He had to hold her a little tighter as she bounced up and down in his arm. He turned his attention to the car, to see his other kid get out of the passenger seat, a wide smile on his face. Maria hit his arm a few times, and he relented, placing her gently on the ground. She squealed again, and took off towards her brother at full speed. 

"Hey Ree!" Peter said, catching her easily and swinging her onto his hip. Tony raised an eyebrow, and opened his mouth to ask the question, but his wife beat him to it. 

"Ree?" she asked, closing the driver's side door, looking at their kids. Peter shrugged. 

"She wanted a nickname that rhymed with Petey. So we came up with Ree. She loves it." he responded, blowing a raspberry into the little girls cheek, earning a round of small giggles. 

"Petey, stop!" Maria giggled, and Tony nodded. 

"Yeah, Petey. Stop, and come give your dad a hug." Tony said, walking down the steps. Peter rolled his eyes but met him halfway, and Tony wrapped his arms around his son tightly. 

"Hey, bug." he whispered, and Peter tightened his grip minutely in response. 

"Hey, Dad." he said back, finally pulling away with a bright smile. 

"How's college?" Tony decided to ask next, pulling a squirming Maria out of Peter's arms and into his. She let out a yawn, and rested her head on his shoulder. Peter watched with a soft smile, before replying. 

"Dumb." he replied, turning back to the car to retrieve his bags. Tony let out a snort. 

"How eloquent, Pete." he joked, and Peter laughed. Natasha walked over and rolled her eyes at their banter, before turning her attention to their daughter. 

"I think it's about nap time, huh baby?" she asked the little girl quietly. He felt Maria shake her head against her shoulder. 

"No. I wanna play with Petey." she whined, but Tony knew she was getting tired since missing her nap to wait for Peter. 

"How about...we watch a movie with your brother, huh? Does that sound like fun, peanut?" he asked softly, and Maria perked up a bit and nodded. By that time, Peter had rounded the car again with all of his bags. 

"I hear it's movie time?" he asked with a goofy grin. Tony shook his head fondly before leading them all into the house. He helped them get situated on the living room couches before starting the movie. 

He had thought that Maria would conk out about ten minutes into the movie, but she was still going strong, talking to Peter in a small quiet voice. Tony got up, pretending that he was headed to the kitchen, and stopped a little bit behind the pair, listening to the conversation. 

"So what does a hero do, Petey?" Maria's small voice asked, her big green eyes turned to her older brother. He could see Peter's face scrunch up a bit in thought, before he looked down with a small smile. 

"They are people who help other people when they need it." Peter answered, and Maria thought about it for a moment, before smiling. 

"So...are mind doctors heroes?" Maria asked, and Tony froze. That's how they explained his therapist to her, when she asked why he had to see her if he wasn't sick. He held his breath as he watched as Peter looked around in confusion. 

"Mind doctors...like Dr. Strange?" Peter asked, voice curious as he tucked some of Maria's hair behind her ear. Maria let out an impatient sigh, that reminded him of Natasha. He rolled his eyes fondly, feeling a pair of arms wrap around his waist. He looked down and saw Natasha giving him a curious look. He just held his finger up to his lips, before pointing to the pair on the couch. 

"No Petey. Dr. Strange isn't a real doctor, he's a wizard." Maria replied, like she was explaining something simple. Peter lifted an eyebrow at her before nodding. 

"Okay. So not Strange. What do you mean by head doctor then, Ree?" He asked softly, and Maria scrunched her nose up a bit like she was thinking, making him smile. 

"Like the one Mama makes Daddy go to, when he feels sad." Maria said, and Tony could see Peter freeze for a second, before looking up and making direct eye contact with him. He should have known Peter knew they were there. His son's eyes were wide, like he was asking for help. Tony shook his head, and whispered under his breath so only Peter would hear, "You're doing great, bug." Peter smiled a bit, before nodding and turning back to Maria. 

"Yeah. Head doctors are heroes. Very important heroes." Peter replied fondly, and Maria nodded. 

"Good. I'm going to become a head doctor. I can help people not be sad, and that way I can be a hero like you, and Mama and Daddy." Maria replied with a determined nod. Peter looked down at her in wonder, before looking over to them. 

"That's sounds like a great idea, Peanut." Tony replied softly, earning a beaming smile from the little girl. 

"Of course it is. I thought of it all by myself." Maria said, popping the serene atmosphere like a balloon. Tony snorted, while Natasha shook her head. 

"She's your kid." she replied, before walking away. Tony sent a wink to his kids, before following his wife. 

"I like how she's only mine when it's convenient for you." he joked, smiling sweetly at the death glare being aimed in his direction. 

"You're lucky I need you to take care of Maria when she's up at the crack of dawn." Natasha said with a flat voice. Tony laughed, before gathering his wife in his arms and pressing a kiss to her head. 

"She's a terror." Tony agreed, which finally caused a small smile to spread across Natasha's face. 

"Yeah, but she's our terror. And she wants to be a hero." Natasha replied in a whisper, her attention on the two kids giggling in the distance. Tony followed her gaze. 

"Yeah...but at least it's a mental health hero, rather than the kind that swings around buildings dodging bullets." Tony said, and Natasha let out a soft laugh. Suddenly she stopped and looked at him, a vulnerable look in her eyes, and he watched her with his eyebrows drawn together. 

"We did okay right? With Peter?" she finally asked, voice small and almost silent. He glanced over and could tell Peter was listening by the tilt of his head, even though his attention was focused on Maria. He took a deep breath. 

"We did our best, Tash. I think it worked though, right? He's in college, he's being trained to be the next leader of the Avengers, he's...." he trailed off, and Natasha's eyes softened a bit before she nodded. 

"Alive." she finished for him, and he nodded, letting out a shaky breath. 

"Yeah. So I think we did okay." Tony finished with a smile. Natasha ran her fingers through his hair gently, while they both watched their kids from afar. Tony lived in the moment for a bit longer, before he ruined it with a sarcastic comment. 

"But hey, if he ends up messed up...at least we have Maria as a do over." he said, and Natasha rolled her eyes with a chuckle. 

"Only you, Tony." she said, moving away from him and into the kitchen, pulling ingredients from the fridge for dinner. He smiled. 

"You're life would be boring without me, just admit it." he said, smirking. Natasha stopped for a minute, staring at him with a calculating gaze for a moment. He watched as she found something in his eyes and she broke out in a small smile. 

"Yeah, my life would definitely be different if I hadn't met you." she said, a hint of seriousness in her voice, and he could tell she was imagining a future without them in it. He walked over a grabbed her hand before she could get caught up in the thoughts, and he brought it up to his mouth to kiss it gently. 

"Well you never have to worry about it, cause I'm right here." he whispered, and she nodded quickly, sending him a grateful look. They stood like that for a minute, before she turned away and grabbed a cutting board. When she turned away all trace of sadness was gone from her eyes, and she handed him the board. 

"Start cutting vegetables, and before you complain yes you have to eat them. You too, Peter!" she said, earning a grumble from the next room. Tony let out a soft laugh before doing as he was told, feeling content. 

\---

TONY AND NATASHA WILL RETURN ;) 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! I hope that was worth the long wait? Maybe? If not I'm sorry BUT I have a fun announcement!
> 
> I have decided to write a prequel!!! It will be about Natasha and Tony meeting and how their relationship came to be and all of that. I have all the chapters lined up and I have tons of ideas! I am going to wait until I have a few chapters done before posting the first one, so that you guys won't have to wait a super long time between chapters! So just a little bit of a wait then you'll have it!
> 
> So I will be adding this story to a series where I will post the prequel when it's ready so subscribe to that so you'll be the first to know when I post the story...you know if you wanna :) the series will be called "darkness exists" and I'm still brainstorming titles for the prequel itself and I'm open to ideas!!
> 
> Please leave a comment and let me know what you thought of this chapter, and any ideas you have for this story or the prequel!! Let me know if you're excited for the prequel too...hopefully you are!
> 
> ALSO THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING! I LOVE YOU!


	23. Sneak Peak

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is the sneak peak for the sequel (or prequel I guess) called "darkness still remains" for those who were interested in Natasha and Tony's relationship before Ironman 1. 
> 
> This is only part of chapter 1, so the rest is in the "darkness still remains" story so check it out! There's also 4 other chapters posted as well with more to come! 
> 
> I actually was thinking about how I can incorporate Far From Home in this story, so if you have ideas for that leave them below!

_"I've spent a thousand nights_  
_Lost in your emerald eyes_  
_Lost in a place where I know you can see my soul_  
_Make me lose track of time_  
_You and your emerald eyes_  
_Finally found a place that I can call my home"_

_~Anson Seabra, "Emerald Eyes"_

_\---_

  
Tony sighed as he looked around the ballroom. He felt restless, tapping his fingers on the tablecloth that was probably worth more than a tablecloth should be. He saw his father send him a glare from across the room, and straightened his back out of habit. That's when he saw a pair of striking green eyes watching him from a few feet behind his father. He smiled at her, and soon she was making her way over to him. He felt a bit guilty as he watched her slim form cross the room. He never liked coming to these things and everyone expecting he was going to attach himself to some hot girl and leave with her. 

In their defense, he always did, but only to get away from the gala. He usually dropped the girl off along the way, using his reputation as a way to escape the stuffy atmosphere around him. 

"You look a little bored." the woman said, as she came to a stop in front of his chair. He let out a laugh as he looked up at her, again noticing her striking eyes. He shrugged, before standing and offering her the chair next to him. 

"Yeah, this isn't my favorite scene, if I'm being honest." Tony replied, waiting for her to sit before reclaiming his chair. 

"But you're here anyway?" she asked, looking over at him with a small smile on her red lips, a question in her voice. He flashed her his best press smile. 

"I just go where the old man tells me to go. I've found it's much easier that way." Tony replied, flagging the passing waiter and grabbing two water glasses, handing one to the woman. She took a sip, before setting the glass down on the table and started studying him with her eyes. He let her for a minute, before he coughed and turned more in her direction. 

"See something you like?" he asked cockily. She raised an eyebrow at his tone before shaking her head. She reached over and grabbed the napkin under his glass and started folding it. 

"I'm seeing a young man who doesn't seem like the type to do as Daddy says, and yet here he is. Care to explain why you're really here?" the woman asked, focus still on the napkin she was folding meticulously. Tony watched her for a moment, debating what to say next. 

"How 'bout this. You give me your name, and I'll tell you why I'm here. It's only fair, you reading into my soul and all." Tony said, and she looked up at him with another small smile before she let out a melodious laugh. She nodded. 

"I suppose that's fair." She hesitated a bit, as if wrestling with something. "Natasha." she said finally, her green eyes meeting his. He could see an emotion lingering in them he couldn't place, before she looked back down at the napkin. He felt himself smiling. 

"Tony." he replied, and she let out a snort this time. Which he should have found repulsive and unladylike, but she seemed to make it sound elegant. 

"I know." she replied, smirking in his direction. He felt a laugh leave his mouth without knowing, and he pointed at her with a teasing smile. 

"Cheeky. I like it. Now, wanna tell me why this napkin is taking so much of your attention?" he asked, looking down at the now triangle shape in her hand. She shook her head, green eyes dancing. 

"Nope. Deal's a deal. You tell me why you're here, and maybe I'll tell you about the napkin." she responded, sitting back in her chair as if ready for a story. He stared at her in awe for a moment, before nodding. He didn't know what it was about this girl, but she had a story, and he couldn't help but want to know every part of it. He settled back in his chair as well.

"Well, I'm home from the summer from MIT." he started, before she furrowed her eyebrows making him stop. 

"You're not old enough to be in college." she stated, not rudely but as if just stating a fact. He nodded with a laugh. 

"Yeah, I get that a lot. But you're right, I'm 16. I started college when I was 14, I'm about to go into my last year. My dad's idea, not mine. I guess when you're the son of a genius, you get some genius genes yourself." Tony said with a shrug, he never really like to brag about his brain to others, despite what others may think. Natasha nodded thoughtfully, before gesturing for him to continue. 

"Anyway, yeah so summer break. I was meant to go home with my buddy Rhodey. But, last minute my Mom called, said I needed to be home. Dad's orders. Of course he would never take the time to tell me himself." he scoffed, before shaking his head and continuing. "But uh, apparently since I'm almost done with college, I need to start acting like the next in line for the company. Which means attending these stupid galas." Once he was finished, he wasn't quite sure what made him spill his issues to a complete stranger. He looked up to see her watching him with that same calculating gaze from before. 

They held each other's gaze, her brilliant green and his soft brown, for a few more moments before she looked away. 

"Okay now, hold your fingers like this." she said, her soft hand wrapping around his and maneuvering them until his index fingers were touching and his thumbs were in the air. He watched her hands before looking up in utter confusion.

"What?" he choked out, earning a small laugh from her. 

"I told you I would explain the napkin. Now hold your hands still like that." she instructed, before she balanced the folded napkin. She eyed his fingers for a moment, before flicking the napkin, which then flew between his fingers and landed behind his hands. He looked from the napkin to her for a moment before she arranged her hands like his were. 

"It's called paper football. Now it's your turn." she said nodding to the napkin that was still sitting in front of him. He looked at her for another moment, before shrugging. 

"What the hell. Okay." he balanced the napkin like she did, before flicking it. His shoulders slumped when the napkin didn't even get get remotely close to her hands. She let out another laugh, her face lighting up. He shook his head at her before she gestured that it was her turn. 

They played for another thirty minutes, and by the time Tony finally got the hang of it, he noticed the guests getting ready to leave. He slipped the makeshift football into his pocket before he stood up, offering Natasha a hand. 

"Thanks, you made this whole thing...a lot more bearable." he said, giving her hand a squeeze before letting go. He stood still as she placed a kiss on his cheek, giving him a small smile before she walked away. 

"Hey." he called, watching as she turned back around, "Will I see you at the next gala?" he asked, a small part of him hoping she would say yes. She looked at him for a moment, before giving him a flirty smirk.

"You just might." she replied, before disappearing into the crowd.

TONY AND NATASHA WILL RETURN

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys liked the sneak peak! Head over to the other story if you want to read the rest of chapter one, as well as the other chapters that are up!
> 
> Also please leave comments on what you thought and if you have ideas for Far From Home!


	24. Far From Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The long awaited conclusion! I was hesitant about doing Far From Home, cause I was unsure about how to work in Natasha and Tony still being alive in it...but I finally got some inspiration and here it is!
> 
> I hope you enjoy! Here's Far From Home! If you have any questions about how I changed things, feel free to ask in the comments!
> 
> Blanket Trigger Warning: keep yourself safe!
> 
> ENJOY AND LEAVE A COMMENT! Also ignore any typos, I edited fast cause I was so excited to post it!

"Europe? You want to go to Europe?" Tony repeats, looking over at Natasha quickly before facing Peter again. Natasha was holding a squirming Maria, who was barely eight months old. Peter shrugged sheepishly. 

"It's the senior trip. Ned and MJ are going and I don't know...it sounds like fun?" Peter said, hesitant. Tony swallowed down the panic at the thought of his son being so far away so soon. It had been almost a year, but both Peter and Tony still had nightmares about what happened. And even Natasha had a couple of flashbacks still, forgetting Peter was back and going almost catatonic when she saw that he was actually back. They were still dealing with things, and the thought of Peter going so far away made Tony want to lock him in a closet and keep him close for the rest of his life. 

Tony looked over at Natasha for help and saw her brows furrowed in thought as she absentmindedly cleaned some spit from Maria's chin. Tony wanted to smile at the domestic scene, but the elephant in the room kept him from doing so. Natasha must have sensed they were both looking at her because she finally looked between them.

"It does sound like fun, bug. Do you think you're ready to be so far from home?" Natasha asked softly. Peter looked down to his hands at the question, looking sheepish. He didn't say anything for a moment so Tony spoke up. 

"Bug?" he prodded and Peter looked up with a sad smile before he shrugged. 

"I don't think I'll ever be ready to be so far away. But I have to get used to it eventually right? With college coming soon?" Peter spoke softly, looking frantically between them. Tony moved closer and brushed some of his bangs from his forehead gently, smiling when Peter leaned into his touch. 

"I agree, one day we will all have to get used to it. But if you're not ready, then you can take as much time as you need. You don't need to rush into things because you feel like you should." Tony said softly, and Peter closed his eyes and leaned his head into the hand Tony had cupped on his cheek. They stood like that in silence for a moment before Peter opened his eyes with a determined look. 

"I know I don't need to rush Dad. But I think it will be good for me. For all of us. And I'll be with Ned and MJ, and I'll call everyday. And if while I'm there I feel like I can't do it anymore, I'll call you." Tony felt panic grip his chest at the words, but he forced them down with a nod and a strained smile. 

"Of course, bug. You call me anytime and I will come get you immediately, we can steal Cap's quinjet." Tony said instead of addressing his own fears. Peter looked at him with wide eyes before looking at Natasha as well. 

"So I can go?" he asked, looking between them. Tony looked over at Natasha who was sending him a questioning look. She studied his face for a moment before nodding and looking at Peter with a sweet smile. 

"Of course, bug." she answered, and Tony nodded in agreement. Peter beamed before bouncing on his feet in excitement. Tony felt a smile cross his face at the sight. 

"I gotta go call Ned!" he screeched, rushing up the stairs quickly before he disappeared in his room with a excited slam of the door. Maria giggled at the sudden noise, and Natasha walked over and set her down on her blanket near her toys. She watched Maria settle for a minute, making sure she was content before she motioned for Tony to come sit next to her on the couch. Tony let out a shaky sigh before walking over.

"You had every right to tell him not to go." she said quietly, purposefully keeping her gaze on their daughter. Tony felt his right hand automatically clutch at his left wrist, brushing over the scars that still remained from the gauntlet. He stared unseeingly at the stuffed bunny sitting next to Maria, mind flashing through memories he wished he could forget, when he felt a hand touch his face, yanking him back into the present. 

He looked over to Natasha wildly as she shushed him gently, moving to grasp his hand and squeezing. He focused on the feeling of her hands on his and took a few deep breaths. 

"It's not his fault I'm messed up." Tony finally found the voice to whisper. Natasha hummed curiously, letting him fill the silence with his thoughts. 

"It's not his fault I can't let go of the past. He's here, so why can't I stop dreaming about it? I can't stop him from living because I can't move past something that shouldn't still affect me." Tony rambled, guilt pooling in his stomach as he fought against the memories threatening to swallow him whole. Natasha let out a sigh before forcing him to look at her. 

"Tony. Our kid died. He was dead for a year. Yeah we got him back, we're lucky. But you don't just move past that unscathed. I still struggle with it too. I am so grateful that he's here and alive, but he was still gone and that wound will probably never heal." her voice rough with emotion. Tony just nodded, the lump in his throat too big for him to talk through. Natasha pressed a kiss to his temple. 

"But you're right. We can't stop him from going. We all need help moving past it, and maybe this will help." she finished. Tony took a deep breath and nodded. 

"Yeah. I'm sure everything will be fine." Tony said, feeling a bit calmer than before. Natasha brushed another kiss to his forehead, standing up. 

"Let's go help Peter sort through his clothes. He might need some new ones before he leaves." she said, offering him a hand to help him up. 

"Da Da!" a small voice piped up, causing them to both laugh. Tony bent down and scooped Maria up, causing a burst of giggles to stream out of her mouth. He pressed a kiss to her cheek with a smile. 

"Well Little Miss, it looks like you're helping." he said, balancing her on his hip as he followed Natasha up the stairs. 

  
\---

"I have a plan. Okay, first, I sit next to MJ on the flight." Peter said, sitting down next to Ned without a greeting. Ned turned to him surprised, but nodded in agreement. 

"Mhm." his best friend hummed in agreement. Peter continued. 

"Second, I’m gonna buy a dual headphone adapter and watch movies with her the whole time." he said, watching Ned's face closely for a reaction. 

"Okay."

"Three, when we go to Venice, Venice is super famous for making stuff out of glass, right?" Peter asked, and Ned looked confused for a moment before nodding. 

"True."

"So, I’m gonna buy her a Black Dahlia necklace, because her favorite flower is the Black Dahlia, because of, well..." he trailed off but Ned nodded knowingly. 

"The murder." Ned finished with a nod. 

"The murder. Four, when we go to Paris, I’m gonna take her to the top of the Eiffel Tower, give her the necklace..." Peter continued, feeling a bit self conscious at this point. 

"Oh!" Ned squeaked, looking a bit surprised. Peter ignored him for a moment. 

"And then five, I’m gonna tell her how I feel...And then six, hopefully she tells me she feels the same way." Peter finished, looking at Ned, hoping his plan was a good idea. Ned didn't give much away in his face but he nodded. 

"Oh! Don’t forget step seven." Ned said pointing his finger in the air. Peter furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. He didn't remember a step seven. 

"Step seven..." he asked, slightly panicked. 

"Don’t do any of that." Ned said, and Peter stopped short. 

"Why?" he asked, confused. Ned just looked at him in exasperation. 

"Because we’re gonna be bachelors in Europe, Peter!" Ned exclaimed. Peter felt his shoulders slump. 

"Ned..." Peter whined, wishing his friend would just be supportive. 

"Look, I may not know much, but I do know this: Europeans love Americans." Ned said, excited. 

"...Really?" Peter asked, doubtful that that was true. His father had told him stories of his business trips to Europe, and he made it sound like Europeans hated everything about Americans.

"And more than half of them are women!" Ned continued as if he hadn't heard Peter. 

"Okay, sure, but...I really like MJ, man. Okay? She’s awesome, she’s funny in a sort of dark way, and sometimes I catch her looking at me, and I like I’ve feel stood up way too...Wait. Dude, she’s coming now. Just don’t say anything." Peter rambled, until he caught sight of MJ walking towards them a bored look on her face like always. 

"What up, dorks? Excited about the trip?" MJ asked as she came to a stop in front of their table. Peter nodded nervously. 

"Hey, uh, yeah. We’re just talking about the trip." Peter said, cursing himself for being so awkward. 

"Yeah, and Peter’s plan." Ned said then, causing Peter to want to bury himself six feet underground. He felt MJ's attention turn to him. 

"You have a plan?" she asked a slightly curious tone in her voice. Peter shook his head quickly. 

"I don’t-I don't have a plan." he blurted out. And Ned looked between them with wide eyes. 

"No, he’s just going to collect tiny spoons while we’re traveling to other countries." Ned fills in, sending Peter a wink. Peter just sighs internally at his friend. 

"Like a grandmother?" MJ asked, confused. Peter rolled his eyes. 

"I’m not collecting tiny spoons. He’s collecting tiny spoons." Peter said, glaring at Ned, before turning back to MJ who was looking between them curiously. 

"Oh. Okay, well...that was a real roller coaster." she said. 

"Mhm..." Peter hummed awkwardly, wishing more than anything for this moment to be over. 

"By the way, travel tip: You should probably download a VPN on your phone, just so that the government can’t track you while we’re abroad." MJ took pity on him and changed the subject. Peter nodded with a sigh of relief. 

"Smart. Will do." he said, before MJ nodded and walked off. He let out a groan once she was far enough away. 

"Dude, I think that went really great!" Ned said, elbowing him. Peter just glared at him before getting up and walking away himself. 

\---

"Okay." she hears Peter mumble to himself as he walked around his room, packing. She watches silently as he looks at his suit hanging in the closet. He stares at it for a moment before shaking his head and shutting the closet door, to her surprise. She decides to take that moment to walk in. 

"Hungry?" she asks, throwing the banana she had brought towards him, knowing his reflexes would allow him to catch it. Until they didn't and the banana hit him square in the shoulder. She furrowed her eyebrows in worry as he stared at her with a hint of betrayal in his eyes. 

"Oh... So sorry. I thought you could sense that with your Peter-tingle." Natasha says, joking around as she walks further into his room. Peter just rolls his eyes at her joke. 

"Please do not start calling it Peter-tingle. Dad is bad enough." Peter complains, looking around his room for something. 

"So what's up? You can dodge bullets but not bananas?" she asks curiously, sitting on the edge of his bed. Peter just sighs tiredly before coming to sit next to her. 

"No, I just really need this vacation. I need a break. But I'm also really nervous to be going so far away." Peter mumbles, stress evident in his voice. She leans over and pulls him into a side hug, pressing a kiss to the top of his head. 

"You deserve the break. And it's going to be fun, and everything will be okay." she comfort, rubbing his shoulder. He nods from where his face is tucked under her chin. They sit like this for a moment before he pulls away. 

"You're right. It'll be fun." he says, standing up to continue packing, sounding more like he was trying to convince himself of the words than her. She stands up, walking over to the door to leave before she stops and turns around. 

"Yeah. You know what? You should pack your suit, just in case. I have a tingle about it." Natasha says lightly as to not stress him out. She sends him a smirk at the joke when he groans. 

"Please stop saying 'tingle', Mama." he whines. Natasha just laughs and walks out, coming to a stop where Peter can't see her to see if he was going to listen and put the suit in his bag. She watches as he looks at it again, opening the closet door to stare at it. Instead he just shakes his head. 

"No." he whispers out loud, closing the door again before coming to a stop when he spots his Iron-Spider suit in it's case by the door. He looks at it, deep in thought, before shaking his head again. 

"No. No, I'm not." he says, walking over to his bed and shutting his suitcase pointedly. Natasha just shakes her head silently, before slipping out of the hallway quietly. She walks down to Maria's room, already forming a plan to slip his suit in his bag when he's not paying attention. She knows it will help both her and Tony sleep at night to know he had it with him. 

\---

"No, no, no, no. We wanna stay. We wanna stay." Peter pleads into the phone. He hears his dad let out a sigh on the other end. 

"It’s a good thing I packed your suit, huh. I can’t believe you forgot it." his mom's voice piped up through the speaker, she sounded far away but Peter could tell from her tone that she knew he didn't "forget" it. 

"Yeah." Peter said, trying not to sound guilty, but judging by the tinny laugh his mom let out, it hadn't worked. His dad cleared his throat. 

"So, who was that guy you were with? Was that Dr. Wizard?" his dad asked, his voice had lost the panicked quality to it and now he just sounded curious. 

"You know he hates when you call him that. And, ummm... No. I don’t know who that was. He was a new guy. I was trying to help him." Peter answered, earning a scoff from his dad. 

"He doesn't get a say in what I call him. A new guy huh? I haven't noticed any new heroes pop up. Has Agent said anything to you Tash?" his dad's voice coming in quieter at the end as he directed his words to his mom. He could barely pick up her reply on the other end. 

"Phil has other things to worry about, so no. I can ask around?" his mom answered so he quickly stepped in. 

"No. No. Don't do that. You guys are retired. Let someone else worry about it. I'll let you know if anything else comes up, but just stay out of it please? I want you guys to relax and enjoy retirement, not go jumping back in at the first sign of trouble." Peter begged. He waited patiently for a response, knowing that his parents were having one of their conversations without saying anything that always creeped him out. 

"Okay, bug. We'll stay out of it. So, uhh, how’s the plan going?" his dad asked, changing the subject, his voice teasing. Peter rolled his eyes. 

"There’s... some setbacks, for sure." Peter said, ignoring the teasing chuckle his dad let out at the answer. He heard some shuffling before his mom's voice came on, clearer this time. 

"Ignore your dad, he's a loser when it comes to romance. Trust me. Don’t overthink it, just trust your instincts and you’ll be fine." his mom assured him, talking over his dad's loud protests in the background. Peter let out a laugh at their antics, enjoying how normal this conversation felt after everything they had been through. It was nice having them retired. 

"I know. Love you guys." he said with a laugh. His dad finally stopped complaining when he said that. 

"Love you too Pete! Bye!" his dad shouted in order to be heard, but as soon as he finished there was a screech that sounded like Maria. He heard his mom sigh. 

"That was your fault. Go take care of it." she reprimanded his dad, "Love you, bug. Have fun." she finished, hanging up. Peter smiled slightly before turning his attention back to his group as they all gathered around the television. 

  
\---

"What are you gonna do about the water monster?" Ned asks later that night as they are getting ready for bed. Peter lets out a sigh, picking up his toothbrush with a shrug.

"Nothing. it’s dead. And besides, that Mysterio guy’s all over it. Look... I just wanna spend some time with MJ. We were talking about Paris and... I think she really likes me." Peter said, hoping to change the subject from the monster. Ned took the bait luckily and smiled. 

"That’s nice. Reminds me of when Betty and I first fell in love. I had just finished my first fruit cobbler, right-?" his best friend rambled when suddenly he stopped talking and Peter heard a thump. He whirled around to see Ned unconscious on the bed and Nick Fury sitting in their chair with a gun. Peter gaped for a minute, looking back and forth between Ned and Fury. 

"You’re a very difficult person to contact, Spider-Man." Fury finally said, breaking the silence. Peter let out an affronted noise. 

"Uncle Nick? You just shot Ned." he said dumbly, eyeing his uncle curiously before turning his gaze worriedly to Ned. His uncle just let out a chuckle. 

"It’s just a mild tranquilizer. He’ll be alright." he assured. Peter just nodded cautiously. 

"If you say so. It would be really awkward to explain to my parents if he didn't wake up." Peter said, finally putting down his toothbrush and looking at his uncle, who had a guilty look on his face. Peter furrowed his eyebrows. 

"My parents don't know you're here do they?" he asked suspiciously, and the look on his uncle's face confirmed his theory. 

"The important thing is, you’re here." Fury avoided the question. Peter let out a sigh. 

"Do I want to know why you are approaching me on a school field trip, without my parents knowing you're here?" Peter asked, feeling a bit annoyed at this point. Fury waved him off before continuing. 

"Here’s what I do know... a week ago, a village in Mexico was wiped out by a cyclone. Witnesses say that cyclone had a face. Three days later, a similar event in Morocco. A village was-" Fury got cut off by a knock at the door. Peter watched in alarm as Fury pointed his tranquilizer gun at the door. Peter held his hand out to stop him as Mr. Harrington's voice filtered through the door. 

"Just making the rounds. See if anyone needs any emotional counseling after today’s traumatic event." his teacher said, and Peter motioned for Fury to stay quiet as Mr. Harrington pushes open the door. 

"No. we‘re... we’re okay. We’re fine, thank you." he says, stepping forward to make sure Fury wasn't seen. 

"Great. Cause I’m not qualified to actually..." his teacher gets cut off by a snore from Ned. Mr. Harrington stops short and starts to back out of the room.

"Oh, he’s passed out. I’m not really qualified to do it anyway, so... good night." Mr. Harrington continues, before leaving and closing the door behind him. 

"That was my teacher, sorry about that. You were saying?" Peter says quietly, turning back to Fury. 

"A village was destroyed by what may well be another world-threatening..." Peter has to hold back a snort at the look on his uncle's face when another knock interrupts him. 

"Babe? You still awake? You’re not answering any of my texts." Betty's voice comes in muffled through the door. Peter rolls his eyes at his uncle's angry look. 

"Um... he’s asleep, Betty." he calls so she can hear him from the other side of the door. 

"Oh, already?"

"Mh-hmm. Yeah."

"Okay." she says, finally walking away. He turns back to his uncle, who looks annoyed. 

"Okay, we're taking this somewhere else. Suit up." he says, before standing up and slipping out of the door. Peter lets out a tired sigh before deciding to listen and grabbing his suit.

\---

  
"You're dad wanted me to give these to you once he...retired." Fury said hesitantly, handing Peter a small case. He grabbed it and eyed it curiously. 

"And he didn't want to give it to me himself because?" Peter asked, suspiciously. Fury just shrugged. 

"I don't know kid, that man has never made sense to me. Just take the damn thing." Fury spit out, annoyed. Peter just gave him a look, but decided not to say anything as they arrived. Fury lead him through a couple of streets before they disappeared down some stairs into an underground base. 

"You can lose the mask. Everyone here's seen you without it. You'd only be feigning anonymity and breathing through spandex for no good reason." his uncle said, and Peter glanced around hesitantly before nodding and taking off his mask, still trying to keep up. 

"Over there we have Maria Hill, you remember her right?. That is Dimitri." Fury says pointing out Maria and a scary looking man who was cleaning a gun. He waved at Maria, who gave him a soft smile in return. He didn't know her that well, but he knew she helped watch him when he visited Fury when he was younger. 

"And this is Mr. Beck." Fury finishes, pointing at the man who had helped with the water monster, who was standing there still in his suit and cape. 

"Mysterio?" Peter blurts, and the man just raises an eyebrow curiously. 

"What?" he asks, and Peter just shakes his head. 

"Doesn't matter. It's just what my friends have been calling you." he says dismissively, moving forward to shake the man's hand. 

"Well, you can call me Quentin." the man replies with a smile, and Peter just nods. He was still confused on why his uncle had him remove his mask, when he knew he'd never met this man before. But he knew his parents trusted Fury, and that was enough for him for now. 

"You handled yourself well out there today. I saw what you did with the tower. We could use someone like you on my world." Quentin speaks up pulling him out of his thoughts. Peter ducks his head bashfully, before the words finally process. 

"Thanks. I'm sorry. Your world?" he asks, looking over at his uncle in surprise. 

"Mr. Beck is from Earth. Just not yours." his uncle answers, and Peter just widens his eyes in shock. 

"There are multiple realities, Peter. This is Earth, Dimension 616. I'm from Earth 833." Quentin says, taking Peter's look as confusion. Peter nods excitedly.

"I'm sorry, you're saying there's a multiverse? 'Cause I thought that was just theoretical. That completely changes how we understand the initial singularity. We're talking about an internal inflation system and how does that even work with all the quantum--? It's insane--" he rambles, before he realizes everyone was looking at him. Maria seemed amused, but he still stopped talking quickly. 

"S-sorry. It's really cool." he apologizes, remembering not everyone found science as interesting as he did. If his dad was here, he was sure he would be freaking out right alongside Peter. 

"Don't ever apologize for being the smartest one in the room." Quentin reassures him, and Peter sends him a smile in thanks. 

"Anyway..." Maria says, pulling up a hologram on the table in front of them, pulling them back on track. 

"They were born in stable orbits within black holes. Creatures formed from the primary elements: Air, water, fire, earth. The Science Division had a technical name. We just called them Elementals." Quentin starts to explain, and Peter stays quiet taking in all the information in front of him. 

"Versions of them exist across our mythologies." Maria cuts in. 

"Turns out, the myths are real." Quentin finishes. Peter looks up at them. 

"Like Thor. Thor was a myth and now I study him in my physics class." he says, trying to understand more. 

"These myths are threats." his uncle cuts in, looking over at Peter. 

"They first materialized on my earth many years ago. We mobilized and fought them, but with each battle, they grew, got stronger. I was part of the last battalion left trying to stop them. All we did was delay the inevitable." Quentin says softly, staring at the hologram in front of him. 

"The Elementals are here now, attacking the same coordinates. Our satellites confirm it." Maria tells him, pulling up the information as she did. 

"So thank Mr. Beck for destroying the other three. There's only one left: fire." Nick says now, standing up to stand next to Peter. 

"The strongest of them all. The one that destroyed my Earth. It's the one that took my family." Quentin said, absentmindedly fiddling with the wedding ring on his finger. Peter felt a pang of sympathy for the man. 

"I'm sorry." he says softly, and the other man just gives him a tight smile. 

"And it will be in Prague in approximately 48 hours." Maria breaks the moment, and he can feel Nick turn to look at him. 

"We have one mission: kill it. And you're coming with us." his uncle says looking down at him. Peter blanches. "

"I'm sorry. Did you say Prague? Uncle Nick, this all seems like big time, you know, huge superhero kinda stuff. And, I mean, I'm just a friendly neighborhood Spider-Man." Peter rambles, panic making itself known in his stomach as he turned to his uncle in fear. 

"Bitch, please. You've been to space." his uncle fires back unapologetically. Peter feels his stomach clench tighter at the mention of space, but he ignores it for the time being. 

"I know, but that was an accident. Uncle Nick, come on. There's gotta be someone else you can use. What about Thor?" he begs his uncle frantically. 

"Off-world."

"Okay, um, Doctor Strange." Peter asks. 

"Unavailable." Maria cuts in, her arms crossed. 

"Captain Marvel." he asks, knowing she was close with Fury. 

"Don't invoke her name." Fury says instead of no. Peter feels another rock sink in his stomach.

"Look, I really wanna help, I do. But if my parents find out that I left my class trip, their gonna kill me. And if I'm seen like this in Europe, after the Washington Monument, my whole class will figure out who I am and then-- and then the whole world will figure out who I am, then I'm done. Have you even talked to my parents about this?" Peter explained, before asking the question that had been bugging him all night. Fury looks over at Maria and they seem to have a silent conversation. 

"You're parents are retired. I want to keep them away from this stuff and safe with your sister as much as you do. But it's okay. I understand." Fury explains softly. 

"I'm sorry, what?" Peter asks, confused on the sudden turnaround. His uncle's reasoning about his parents made sense. He didn't want them to have to come out of retirement and risk their lives again, not when they had Maria to take care of. 

"Why don't you get back before your teachers miss you and become suspicious. Dimitri. Take him back to hotel, please." Nick says, walking over to him and placing a hand on his shoulder gently to steer him towards the exit. Peter still felt confused, but also relieved he wasn't being asked to help. 

"Thank you, Uncle Nick. And, uh, good luck." he said, stopping at the door. 

"See ya, kid." Quentin pipes in, still standing by the hologram. 

"Yeah, see you." he says to the man before turning to Maria. "Bye, Miss Hill." he says and she sends him a wave. 

"Bye." she says, and he hurries out the door. 

\---

"Hey." he could hear Quentin talking to him but he was still thinking about how Fury, his own uncle, didn't think he was good enough. His uncle had told him that maybe his dad was wrong for putting so much faith in him as a superhero. And Peter was starting to wonder whether or not he was right. He was startled from his thoughts when a hand came to rest on his shoulder. 

"You gotta celebrate, you did something good tonight." Quentin says, smiling down at him. Peter pastes a strained smile on his face in return, not really feeling like celebrating. 

"Yeah..." he trails off, causing the other man to pat him on the back again. He shakes his head. 

"Nick was right. Tony has done a lot for me, so... I owe it to him, to everybody." he says, keeping his relationship with his dad covered up for now. He knew his uncle trusted this man, and that Quentin probably already knew that Tony was his dad. But on the off chance he didn't know, Peter wasn't going to be the one to let it slip. 

"Do you?" Quentin prompts. 

"Yeah! I mean... Mr. Stark gave me the chance to be more, he wants me to be better than him, and Nick just wants me to live up to that." Peter rambles, knowing that he needed to do better, be better, in order to make all the sacrifices his parents made for him worth it. Not to mention to keep them safe, so they wouldn't have to worry about him and enjoy their retirement. 

"What do YOU want, Peter?" Quentin asks, pulling him out of his thoughts again. 

"What do you mean?" he asks, confused. Quentin let out a chuckle at his words. 

"What do you want?" the man repeats, and Peter just gets more confused at the question. 

"…uh, I don’t… know…"

"What do you want, you, Peter Parker, right now? I know you’re thinking about it! What do-" the older superhero pushes, and Peter finally understands. 

"I wanna go on my trip. Right? I wanna go back on my trip, with my friends. I wanna go to the top of the Eiffel Tower with the girl who I like and tell her how I really feel, and… give her a kiss! I don’t…" Peter blurts, before trailing off in embarrassment at the teasing look that crosses the other man's face. 

"Ooh!" the man teases, and Peter rolls his eyes. 

"Shut up, man! I..." Peter stops short, knowing it wasn't that simple. He couldn't just go back on the trip. 

"But you're not gonna do that, are you?" Quentin asks, as if reading his thoughts. Peter shakes his head. 

"No, I can't." he agrees.

"Why not?" he questions, and Peter throws his hands up in exasperation. 

"Because I have too much of a responsibility." he answers, when a woman walks over and taps him on the shoulder handing him his dad's glasses. He feels guilty that he was so careless that he dropped such important glasses onto the floor. 

"Oh, my God, thank you so much!" he says, and the woman just smiles at him before walking away. He turns back to Beck, who is eyeing the glasses curiously. 

"What are those? Are those the...?" the man asks, and Peter nods. 

"EDITH glasses, yeah." he answers, looking down at them. He had realized that his uncle wasn't actually supposed to give them to him until his dad was gone, if the name was anything to go by. He still didn't understand why his uncle gave them to him early. 

"It was on the floor? Try them on, let's see how they look on you." the older man says, waving his hands in the air in front of Peter's face. Peter just nods and puts the glasses on before looking back at Beck.

"...I actually really like them." he says, watching the other man's face. 

"Can I be completely honest with you?" he asks, and Peter nods. 

"Please." 

"They look really stupid." Beck says, only a slight hint of teasing in his voice. Peter feels a thought tingling at the back of his mind.

"Oh." Peter says, taking them back off and looking at them. 

"But maybe they have a contact-lens version of them." Beck was saying, when suddenly the idea hit Peter full force. 

"You try 'em on." he says, holding them out for the other man to take. 

"No, c'mon!"

"Try 'em on!" he insists, and the other man just stares at him like he's crazy.

"I don't wanna- I don't wanna try 'em on!" Beck refuses, and Peter sighs. 

"Just put 'em on!" he laughs as Beck finally gives in and puts them on. 

"What do you think, kid?" Beck asks, and Peter stares at the other man, his thoughts moving a million miles an hour as he tries to come to a decision. He looks away for a second, going over the words that his dad had left with the glasses.

"To the next Tony Stark, I trust you..." he mumbles to himself, before he looks up at Beck. "To the next Tony Stark, I trust you." he repeats firmly. The other man just stares at him, confused. 

"What?"

"Mr. Stark left me a message with those glasses; 'To the next Tony Stark, I trust you.'" Peter explains, hoping the man would understand, as the idea settles more in his brain. He knew this had to be the right decision. He wasn't ready to take on the new role of Ironman, and his dad knew that seeing as the glasses weren't supposed to be his for a long time. So why not give them to someone more qualified, until he was ready?

"I'm still not following. How many lemonades have you had?" Beck asks, eyeing the cup in front of Peter. 

"He knows every mistake I've ever made, okay? So he must know I'm not ready for something like this." Peter explains as best he can without giving away his real relationship to his dad. 

"Why would he give it to you?" Beck asks then, confused. Peter shrugged.

"Because maybe he doesn't trust me to have EDITH yet, he just trusts me to pick who should. It makes so much more sense, he knows I will always do what's right and he wasn't gonna give them to Fury because Fury would just give himself EDITH." Peter rambles as his scrambled thoughts align into something that makes more sense. 

"Alright, you're probably right about that." Beck concedes, but he still looks confused. 

"Right, so, the world needs the next Iron Man... and it's not gonna be me! I mean, I'm a seventeen-year-old kid from Queens. It needs to be an adult with some experience and that's good like Tony Stark, like you." Peter says, thinking he finally came to the right decision. His dad hadn't meant for him to have the glasses yet, but his dad knew he would make the right decision once he had them. He knew this was the right decision. He wasn't ready for the big times yet, but Beck was. 

The man in question stares at him for a moment before removing the glasses and trying to hand them back to Peter. 

"No, c'mon, Peter... No." the other man says, but Peter isn't listening. He grabs the glasses and puts them on. 

"EDITH?" he asks. 

"Hello, Peter."

"Hi! Yeah, um... I'd like to transfer your control over to Quentin Beck." he says, more sure of his decision the more he thought about it. Fury trusted Beck, and his parents had trusted Fury with their entire family's secret since the beginning. He knew his uncle wouldn't have introduced him to Beck if he wasn't trustworthy. His uncle was super paranoid like that. 

"Peter, what are you doing?" Beck asked, but Peter waved him off. 

"I'm doing the right thing." he said, turning his attention back to the glasses.

"Any transfer will require confirmation." EDITH said. 

"Stark gave you the glasses!" Beck cried, trying to stop him. Peter shook his head. 

"Stark gave me a choice! It's my choice to make, okay? And I'm gonna make it. Look, you're a soldier, a leader, you stopped the Elementals, you saved my life, you saved the world! Okay? He'd be okay with you having them. Trust me." Peter explained. 

"Waiting for confirmation." EDITH said. 

"Confirm." Peter said after he took a deep breath. He took them off and handed them to Beck.

"Welcome to the Avengers." Peter says jokingly, as Beck takes the glasses and then hold his hand out for Peter to shake. 

"Thank you. It's an honor." Beck says and Peter shakes his hand. 

"Yeah." he says with a smile, grabbing his backpack and swinging it over his shoulder. 

"I think Mr. Stark would really liked you." he says before he reaches the door. 

"Where you headed?" Beck asks, still looking down at the glasses in his hand reverently. 

"I'm gonna go find MJ." Peter answers, relieved that he finally gets to go back to his trip. Beck gives him a teasing grin. 

"Good luck, kid. I'll give you about a fifty-fifty chance, you're pretty awkward, so..." the man laughs and Peter just laughs along with him 

"Yeah. See ya later, man!" he says, slipping out the door. 

  
\---

Peter looked around wildly as Beck's voice echoed around him, he couldn't tell which direction it was coming from, and the drones kept changing his surroundings. 

"I don't think you know what's real, Peter...Peter...Peter..." Beck's voice echoed around him. Peter took a shaky breath, trying to calm himself down. The illusion changed, the building around him flying by quickly, until it stopped with a neon sign that said Queens right in front of him. A giant fist then smashes it to pieces, sending Peter backwards towards what looked like the horizon. The illusion then shatters, causing him to fall through what looked like webs, until the illusion stopped suddenly. 

"You need to WAKE UP!" Beck's voice echoed. Peter crashes down on a car, before he rolled off, looking around anxiously. He watches as dozens of drones fly out of the building, before the the illusion kicks back on. Huge shards of glass fall down around him, trapping him. 

"I mean, look at yourself." Beck taunts. Peter reaches out to his reflection to see if it's real when it suddenly comes to life and grabs his hand. Soon he is taken over by dozens of Spider-man doubles, that slowly rip his suit away from him. 

"You are just a scared little kid in a sweatsuit!" Beck's voice continues from all around him. Soon the Spider-mans disappear and he is suddenly in his first homemade suit. He looks around widely seeing a broken down statue of Steve, and he felt his throat close up at the sight. 

"I created Mysterio to give the world someone to believe in." Beck said, and soon there was a giant Mysterio statue standing over him. 

"I control the truth! Mysterio is the truth." Beck's voice says, when suddenly lasers starts shooting at him. He fires a web at Mysterio, before he promptly disappears and a crane appears falling towards him. He narrowly avoids the crane, but is soon hit with a stone arm from the statue.

He screams but then is suddenly standing in front of a grave. He's scared to look at the name, but forces himself to, seeing his father's name staring back at him. He chokes back a sob as he stares at the letters spelling out Anthony Edward Stark. 

"If you were good enough, maybe Tony would still be alive. I wouldn't have had to take him out...and his poor wife. She just got in the way." Beck's voice says softly, reverberating through his skull. He blinks back tears at the words, trying to convince himself that Beck was lying. But how did he know? If Tony had heard about what happened in Europe and came to get Peter...and his mom? Peter had no way to tell if Beck was lying or not. But the thought of his parents death clawed at his mind, closing his throat. 

Suddenly a giant mechanized hand bursts from the ground in front of him, making a grab at him, causing him to scurry back in fear. Soon there was a skeleton in an Ironman suit crawling towards him, a black widow spider crawling out of the empty eye socket. Peter held back another sob at the imagery, sure this was meant to tell him that both of parents were, in fact, dead. Beck had killed them. Leaving him and Maria orphans. Maria. He didn't even want to know who was taking care of Maria now that their parents were gone. Suddenly the the image in front of him turns into multiple Mysterios marching towards him. 

"Deep down, you know I'm right." Beck's voice continued to taunt. Peter couldn't find his own voice, but he knew Beck was right. If he had been better, his parents would be okay. Several more illusions flash by Peter, and he was barely able to keep up with what was happening. All he could do was look frantically around, waiting for the next attack from the drones. 

"You made your choice, and all you had to do was step aside. And now, you ha-" Becks voice cuts out at the same time as the illusion, and suddenly he's standing in front of a collapsing Beck, Nick standing behind him with a gun the smoke still pouring out of the barrel. Suddenly there was chaos around them as agents flew out of cars. His uncle limped towards him. 

"Uncle Nick!" Peter cried, standing up and meeting Nick halfway. 

"Beck's people... We're trying to find everyone who could expose him. Who'd you tell?" his uncle demanded in a panic. Peter looked around wildly and shook his head. 

"Eh..." he stumbled, trying to find his voice. He took a couple deep breaths, trying to shake off the past few minutes. 

"I know you told someone. So, just tell me..." his uncle pressed, sounding worried. Peter scrambled to get his thoughts together. 

"Okay..." he said, wracking his brain. His uncle grew impatient and let out a sigh, before raising his voice. 

"Who did you tell? Who else did you tell?!" his uncle shouted, scrambling Peter out of his thoughts. 

"Just Ned and MJ from my class, and maybe Ned told his girlfriend Betty, but that's it." Peter assured his uncle, when suddenly Nick smiled and started laughing his head shaking. Peter furrowed his eyebrows. 

"What?" he asked, eyeing his uncle worriedly. 

"You... are so gullible." Nick said, stopping Peter short. That didn't seem like something his uncle would say. Peter felt a knot form in his stomach at the thought. 

"What?" Peter said, hoping his uncle was just tired and that everything was fine. 

"I mean, you're smart as a whip. Just a...sucker." Nick's voice slowly distorted until the illusion fell away and Beck was standing in front of him, a smirk on his face. 

"And now all your friends have to die." Beck finished, and Peter's stomach dropped.

"Oh, my god!" he choked out, before two drones flew out from behind Beck and started towards him, flashing illusions. Peter backed away slowly, eyeing them. 

"It's easy to fool people when they're already fooling themselves. But for what it's worth, Peter... I really am sorry." Beck says, and suddenly the illusion stops, and he only hears the start of a train horn before all he feels is pain and everything goes black. 

  
\---

Peter limped out of the jail, looking around before walking over to a man standing a small stall nearby. 

"Excuse me, sir? Can I borrow your phone?" Peter asks, to which the man smiles and says a few words in Dutch before handing Peter his phone. 

"Everyone's so nice here." he mumbles to himself, before wracking his brain for who to call. He had no idea what illusions were real and what was fake. So he had no idea if Beck had actually killed his parents or not. He felt a lump form in his throat at the thought. He didn't want to find out if that was true quite yet, so he dialed Steve's number. 

"Okay... Pick up, pick up, pick up... Hey. Hey Uncle Steve? Uh... I messed up. I need a... I need a ride." Peter rambled before his uncle could say anything else. 

"Okay Pete slow down. I can come pick you up and we can figure out whatever you think you messed up. Can you tell me where you are?" Steve's calm voice washed over him, helping him breath a little easier. 

"Where am I? Uh... where am I, sir?" Peter asked, looking over at the man who's phone he was using. The man smiled and replied in Dutch. 

"Het is Broek op Langedijk." Peter just blinked before holding out the man's phone. 

"Hang on, could you say that into there?" he finally asked, and the man nodded, taking the phone and speaking into it. 

"Hi, it's Broek op Langedijk." the man said into the phone, before listening a bit and nodding. "Yeah, no problem." the man replied handing the phone back to Peter. He grabbed it with a thanks before turning his attention back to his uncle.

"Did you get that?" he asked, nerves still bubbling in his stomach. 

"Yeah, Pete. I had Jarvis help me find it. I'll be there soon okay?" Steve assured him. Peter bit back a sob at the mention of his father's AI. He must have made a sound because his uncle spoke up again. 

"Pete? Is everything okay? Are you injured?" Steve asked, his voice pitched higher in worry. Peter just sniffed and shook his head. 

"Nothing too bad, Uncle Steve. I just really need you to get here." Peter practically begged. He heard Steve let out a small sigh on the other line. 

"Okay, Pete. I just got to tell Buck where I'm headed and I'll be there as fast as I can. Okay?" Steve said, and he could hear Steve moving around in the background. Peter nodded, swallowing the lump in his throat and the relief that Steve would be there soon. 

"Okay, thanks Uncle Steve." he whispered, before he hung up and handed the phone back to the man and limping off to meet Steve. 

\---

"Hold on, Tony." Steve interrupted him looking down at his phone, before he let out a confused noise. 

"What is it?" he asked, walking over to Steve and looking down, noticing the foreign number. "Answer it, maybe it's Peter." he said and Steve nodded quickly before pressing the phone to his ear. Tony watched as Steve started to say hello before stopping, his eyebrows jumping up in surprise, before furrowing in concern. 

"Okay Pete, slow down. I can come pick you up and we can figure out whatever you think you messed up. Can you tell me where you are?" Steve asked then, and Tony felt his heart drop into his stomach with worry. He had no idea what could have possibly happened that Peter had called Steve instead of him for help. 

"Okay, thank you sir." Steve said, motioning to Jarvis' camera as if he did that on a daily basis. Jarvis must have known what he was asking though, as he immediately pulled up a map and a list of coordinates. Tony furrowed his eyebrows at the location, knowing Peter's class was not supposed to be in Norway. 

"Yeah, Pete. I had Jarvis help me find it. I'll be there soon okay?" Steve said, earning his attention again. A pained look crossed Steve's face as they made eye contact. 

"Pete? Is everything okay? Are you injured?" Steve asked then, and Tony felt his breath stop in his throat as he collapsed into the chair behind him. He gripped his left arm tightly as he tried to swallow down his panic. 

"Okay, Pete. I just got to tell Buck where I'm headed and I'll be there as fast as I can. Okay?" Steve said, rushing around now, grabbing his go bag he kept under his stairs. He hung up the phone before he came to a stop in front of Tony, looking down at him in worry. 

"Tony, I'm gonna need you to snap out of it." Steve said sternly, and Tony blinked quickly before nodding, letting out a shaky breath. 

"Okay. Okay. I'm here." Tony said, standing up and Steve nodded. 

"Okay. Peter sounds like he's injured, and he kept rambling about how he messed up. I don't know why he didn't call you, but are you coming?" Steve asked him, and Tony started nodding before Steve could finish talking. 

"Yes, I'm coming Steve. Don't be ridiculous. What about Tash and Maria?" he asked, as they both headed to Steve's living room where Bucky was watching TV. 

"Buck. Me and Tony need to go help Peter. I need you to go stay with Tasha and Maria, make sure they are safe." Steve ordered in what Tony called his Captain America voice. Bucky didn't even ask question before nodding and heading out the door. Tony watched as he walked down the hill that stood between their cabins and let out a sigh of relief. He followed Steve out the back door to where his quinjet was waiting. 

"Let's go." Steve ordered, and Tony nodded grabbing an extra go bag Steve always had around and followed Steve. His phone started ringing the second Steve lifted the jet off the ground. 

"Tash." he answered.

"Bucky told me you guys need to go help Peter. Is everything okay?" Natasha's worried voice filled his ears as Maria wailed in the background. 

"I don't know. He called Steve, not me. He didn't say much to Steve other than a location. But Steve said he didn't sound so good." Tony said, taking a seat next to Steve.

"Okay. Don't worry about us here, Bucky's here and I already called Rhodey and he's on his way too. We're covered. Just focus on Peter, make sure he's okay." Natasha said, and Tony felt himself calm slightly knowing Rhodey and Bucky were watching over the rest of his family. 

"I will." he said, hanging up and turning to the navigation to see how fast they were going to get there.

"He'll be okay, Tony." Steve spoke up a few moments later.

"I hope so, Cap. I hope so." he responded quietly. 

\---

Peter felt tears sting his eyes as he watched the quinjet touch down in the tulip field. He felt himself start walking towards it without thinking. He could see Steve walk out of the jet and start towards him. He could feel the tears building up now as he walked faster.

"Peter? Are you okay?" Steve called as they got closer. He could hear the worry in his uncle's voice. 

"Uncle Steve, is that you?" Peter asked, slowing down a bit at the thought that even this could be an illusion. 

"Is it me? Yeah, of course, it's me?" Steve answered in confusion, still making his way over to Peter, but Peter stopped short. He held out his hand, and watched as Steve stopped slowly, his hands raised in surrender, looking confused. 

"Stop! Tell me something only you would know!" Peter shouted, hoping more than anything that this was true and Steve was here to save him. Steve hummed in confusion, before he straightened with a nod. 

"Something only I would know. Uh. You-I-uh, remember when you were little, and I came over to watch you when you're mom was on a mission and Tony had a meeting? And you wanted to make them cookies, so you climbed up on the top shelf of the pantry and ended up pushing the entire 10 pound bag of flour all over me-" Peter felt relief bubble up inside of him. 

"Okay! Okay! Fine, it's you, it's you, stop!" Peter said, running up to him as fast as he could and wrapping his arms around his middle. Steve grunted a bit at the force of the hug before he too wrapped his hands around Peter. 

"It's so good to see you." Peter whispered, his voice hoarse, and tears streaming down his face. 

"Peter, you're going to have to tell me what the hell is going on here. Your dad is worried sick-" Peter let out a sob at that, and felt the dam finally break inside him as he continued to sob. 

"Dad? My dad's here?" Peter sobbed out, his breaths hitching uncomfortably as he spoke through the sobs wracking his body. Steve looked down at him in alarm and nodded. 

"Yeah he's in the jet, he wanted to have everything ready in case you were really injured-Peter!" Steve explained, and Peter didn't need to hear anymore before he rushed past Steve and into the quinjet. When he reached the inside, the sight that awaited him made the sobs wracking his body come more violently. 

"Daddy." he choked out, not caring about letting the childish name he hadn't used in years slip out of his mouth, as he rushed over and collapsed into his dad's arms. 

"Oh. Okay. Peter, baby? What happened?" he could hear his dad ask, but all he could do was sob harder pressing himself closer to his dad as he possibly could. His dad seemed to realize he wasn't going to answer, so he just pulled Peter closer and started humming softly while rocking them back and forth. He stayed in his dad's arms until his sobs started to die down. He could hear his dad and Steve talking quietly above him, when he decided to finally pull away. His dad stopped mid sentence when he did so, turning his attention to Peter, his hand coming up and brushing comfortingly through his hair. 

"Hey, baby. Wanna tell me what's got you so upset? Also not to worry you, but that cut on your shoulder is gonna need stitches. But luckily our very own Popsicle knows just how to fix that." Tony said, pitching his voice low and soft. Peter nodded numbly, watching out of the corner of his eye as Steve started preparing the tools he would need. He turned back to his dad who was watching him patiently. 

"I'm sorry." he said, his voice completely hoarse from sobbing. His dad hummed with a nod, still brushing his hands through Peter's hair.

"Okay. Wanna tell me what for?" his dad asked softly, using a voice he hadn't used on Peter since he was little. It was the same voice he used on Maria when she woke up early in the morning crying. 

"I was the one to give him the glasses. I didn't know he was behind it, and so I went to Uncle Nick to tell him, but then the drones. And then he said he killed you and Mom. And I didn't know what to believe, and then he hit me with a train..." he trailed off when his father held up a hand to stop him. He could feel Steve stitching through his shoulder as they talked, but he ignored it. 

"Hold on. You got hit by a train?!" his dad asked, voice high. 

"Tony." Steve reprimanded softly, and Tony nodded. 

"Sorry. Okay let's start from the beginning. What glasses?" his dad asked. Peter rubbed his hands over over his swollen eyes quickly. 

"The EDITH ones." Peter said, and his dad's eyes furrowed in confusion, shaking his head. 

"The EDITH glasses? I gave those to Uncle Eye-patch to give you years from now when I was..." Tony trailed off in confusion. Peter nodded. 

"When you died. I figured with the name and all. But he gave them to me now. And then asked me to fight these giant monsters, and I didn't feel like I was ready so I gave the glasses to Beck..." 

"The Dr. Wizard wannabe?" Tony cut in and Peter nodded. 

"Yeah, cause I wasn't ready, so I thought the glasses would be better off in someone else's hands. Someone older." Peter reasoned looking over at his dad to gauge his reaction. His dad just looked confused, but he didn't look angry so Peter continued. 

"But turns out Beck was behind it. He has drones, and now he's controlling them with EDITH and the monsters are just illusions created by the drones. MJ helped me figure that out, so I went to Uncle Nick to tell him, but then Beck was there and there were so many illusions I had no idea what was real. He told me that he killed you...and mom!" Peter rushed out, his words coming out in a jumble. Tony carded his hands through his hair at the words and shushed him quietly, and he felt Steve finish up his stitches before he came around to sit next to his dad. 

"Mom's okay too, bug. She's at home with Bucky and Rhodey. She's protected, and so is Maria." his dad said softly, and Peter felt himself nod in relief, before Tony spoke up again. "And the train?" he asked worriedly. 

"Yeah. He was using illusions to back me onto the tracks without me knowing and then dropped them as soon as the train came...and it hit me. Some people in Norway found me so that's why I'm here." Peter finished, and he could feel his dad stiffen at his words. He watched as his dad closed his eyes and took a few measured breaths, and Peter knew he was trying to stave off a panic attack, so he waited quietly for his dad to calm down.

After a few moments his dad reopened his eyes and looked at Peter. 

"Okay. First, I don't blame you at all for the glasses. You weren't supposed to have them yet anyway so that's your uncle's fault. Me and him are definitely going to have some words when this is over. I know you meant well by giving them to an adult, it's not your fault he turned out to be the bad guy. If Fury didn't see that coming then I doubt you could have, bug. But none of that matters now. Let's figure out a plan, figure out how to take this guy down before he hurts your friends okay?" Tony explained calmly, and Peter nodded, grateful his dad was here to help. 

"I know where he's going. And I'm the only one who can sense the drones...at least I hope so." Peter spoke up, and his dad nodded. 

"Your spidey-sense? I thought it wasn't working?" his dad asked, purposely not teasing him with the other name he had for it. Peter shrugged. 

"I think I know how to get them to work. I'm just gonna need you guys to find my friends, and stay safe while I take care of Beck." Peter said, hoping his dad wouldn't argue. But to his surprise they both nodded in agreement. 

"Okay, kid." Steve said heading back up to the front of the jet and lifting it back into the air. He turned to his dad. 

"I'm gonna need a new suit." he said, and he watched as his dad grinned and pressed a few buttons before another room opened. 

"That I can help you with." his dad said ruffling his hair with a smile. 

  
\---

  
"There they are Cap. Land there." Tony said, pointing to a familiar group of kids. He could barely make out Ned and MJ. Steve just nodded silently and quickly landed the jet. 

"Ned!" Tony shouted as he rushed towards the kids. 

"Mr. Stark!" Ned shouted in relief, while all the other kids except for MJ gaped at him and Steve. 

"I got to get you guys out of here! Get on the jet!" Tony shouted above the commotion. 

"And why should we trust you?" MJ asked, her face devoid of emotion. Tony gaped at her and turned around to share an incredulous look with Steve, who just shrugged. 

"I'm literally Ironman? And if that's not enough, Captain America is literally right behind me?" Tony said desperately, but MJ did not look impressed. Ned was just staring at her in shock. Tony sighed. 

"I work with Spider-Man, okay? You got to get on that jet." Tony said then, hoping that might convince her. It seemed to do the trick, because her eyes widened slightly and she nodded. 

"You work for Spider-Man?" the kid, Tony remembered his name was something stupid like Speed or something, asked. Tony rolled his eyes. 

"Yeah, one of the biggest superheros in the world, and I work FOR Spider-man. Look can we just get to the jet?" he asked tiredly, before turning and seeing the jet explode from one of the drones missiles. Tony sighed again and looked to Steve, gesturing for him to take over. 

"New plan. Into the tower!" Steve said, pointing at a building nearby. The kids nodded and followed Steve with Tony trailing behind. 

"Dad, are you okay?" Peter's voice piped in through the comm unit in his ear. Tony gave a small huff of laughter, and he could tell Steve was holding back a smile. 

"Yeah. We're okay, bug. Just go get Beck." Tony answered, earning some questioning looks from each of the kids at his fond voice. Ned just smiled at him though, knowing what was going on. MJ just narrowed her eyes at him, as if she still didn't trust him. He flashed her a smile, which she ignored. 

"Into the Crown Jewels vault." Steve ordered, rushing the kids forward. 

"Yeah, go, go, go!" Tony said, pushing them along as well. They rushed forward as a drone came chasing after them. Steve quickly grabbed something off the floor and hurled it at the drone, slowing it down. Tony just shook his head. 

"I still have no idea how you do that. Close the door!" Tony said as he and Steve got into the vault and Steve slammed the door shut. 

"Dad! Say something, please, to let me know you're alive!" Peter's voice broke the silence in Tony's ear. Steve's eyebrows furrowed in concern at the panic in Peter's voice. 

"I'm here. I'm here." Tony answered, his finger pressed to the comm. 

"Dad, thank God. Did you find everyone? Is Steve okay?" Peter's voice chattered on. 

"Yep. Got everyone, we should be okay for the time being. Cap's all good, right Cap?" Tony said, looking at Steve with an eyebrow raised. Steve rolled his eyes but nodded. 

"Yeah Spider-man, I'm good. Focus on Beck." Steve said, his voice firm. He heard Peter agree before his voice disappeared again. 

"Are we gonna die?" Ned asked them then, looking between him and Steve. Tony shook his head. 

"Nobody dies on my watch." He said, pulling up some video footage on his watch, trying to figure out what was going on outside the vault. 

"I wasted my life playing video games, and we're gonna die." Ned said in response. Tony looked at him and sighed. He knew Ned well, ever since he found out Peter was Spider-Man and his son in the same day. The kid had slept over at his house several times. Before he could respond though, the blonde girl holding his hand spoke up. 

"I have a fake ID, and I've never even used it." she blurted. Tony raised an eyebrow at Steve, who just shrugged again. Tony rolled his eyes at how useless Steve was, before trying to figure out how to console these kids. He wasn't super good with teenagers, unless their name was Peter. 

"I post stupid videos daily for people to like me." the Speed kid said, and Tony wanted to snort but he could feel Steve glaring at the side of his head, so he refrained. 

"Hey, if it wasn't for those stupid videos, Spider-Man would have never found you." Steve tried to console, causing the Speed kid to gape at him. 

"Spider-Man? Spider-Man follows me? I saved us, guys." Speed said smugly. He watched as MJ rolled her eyes. 

"If you saved us, why are we about to die?" she spit out at the boy. Now it was Tony's turn to gape at her. 

"MJ!" he choked out and she looked at him before Ned shoved her shoulder. 

"Stop it." Ned choked out, his voice shaking slightly. This caused MJ to deflate and she shook her head. 

"I'm sorry, ok? I'm just. I'm obsessed with telling the truth even if it hurts other people's feelings." MJ admitted. Tony nodded understandingly. 

"Okay guys. We're going to be just fine. Spider-man is out there saving the day, and I'm sure once he's done he'll come get us." Tony said, trying to make his voice as comforting as possible. It seemed to work because they all just nodded, relaxing slightly. Then Betty looked at him in confusion. 

"How do you even know Spider-man so well anyway? And why did he send Captain America and Ironman to protect just us? That doesn't make any sense." Betty said, confused. Speed nodded in agreement as if he also wanted to know what was going on. Tony sighed, wracking his brain for a lie when Steve caught his eye and nodded knowingly. 

"Well we're sharing right?" Tony asked, looking down at Ned, who's eyes widened slightly before he gave an approving nod. 

"Yeah?" MJ spoke up, sounding suspicious. Tony nodded, taking a deep breath. 

"Well...Spider-man is...my son. And he knows you guys are from Queens, so he sent us to come find you." Tony explained, hoping that was enough to quench their curiosity. Speed and Betty seemed to accept this and nodded, dropping the subject. But MJ looked at him, her eyes slightly wide in shock. He watched as she looked over at Ned in silent question, to which he nodded with a smile. This caused her to look back up at him with a calculating gaze, before she too nodded and dropped the subject. 

  
\---

  
"Dad!" Peter shouted, when he saw the man standing next to Steve, watching from afar as his classmates gathered back together. He had quickly stopped and changed out of his charred suit, in case he ran into any of his classmates looking for his dad. The man in question whirled around at his voice before breaking into a jog and scooping Peter into a hug. He laughed as he felt his feet lift off the ground in the force of the hug. 

"You did so good, bug. I'm so proud of you." his dad whispered in his ear once he had set Peter back down on the ground, pressing a kiss to the side of his head. Peter blushed and pulled away. 

"Thanks, but it was my fault to begin-" he started but his dad playfully cuffed the back of his head. 

"Uh-uh. Nope. Not your fault. Don't even start with me." Tony said, before Steve awkwardly walked up beside them. 

"Uh, just thought you should know that you're class is watching..." Steve said awkwardly, breaking the moment. Peter blanched and looked over at the new school bus where half the kids were watching them with open mouths. Peter looked to his dad in panic, and his dad shrugged. 

"Um. Oops. Now they know you're my kid. I mean, the blonde girl and speed racer are gonna connect that you're Spider-man too now...sorry?" his dad said sheepishly, turning to him. Peter let out a strangled noise. 

"What? Why?" he asked his dad, turning away so he wouldn't have to focus on his classmates. His dad threw in hands up in surrender. 

"I don't know, kid. They were nosey. They didn't know why Ironman and Captain America were helping them, and they wouldn't trust me so I tried to keep at least half your cover intact and said that Spider-man was my kid." his dad answered with a shrug, his eyes swimming with guilt. Peter deflated. 

"It's fine, Dad. They were gonna figure it out somehow anyway." Peter shrugged, and turned to Steve. 

"Thanks for coming to my rescue, Uncle Steve." Peter said quietly, earning a soft smile from the other man. Soon he was being pulled into another hug, but this one was much stronger. 

"Anytime, Pete." Steve's chest rumbled with his words, and Peter let out a laugh, before Tony pulled on his arm. 

"Don't suffocate my kid, Rogers. He's mine to smother with affection." Tony said, pulling him free and pulling him closer to his chest, his hand automatically finding Peter's hair. Peter laughed. 

"Okay, let's not fight. I'm gonna have to get back to my class." Peter said, pulling away but letting his dad keep an arm looped around his shoulder. His dad just shook his head. 

"Nope. Not letting you out of my sight. Point me in the direction of your teacher and I'll work it out. You're coming home with Steve and me. Ted and MJ can come too, I'll call their parents." Tony said, already starting in the direction of the bus. Peter just rolled his eyes, already accepting the hovering his dad was going to do for the foreseeable future. 

"You know it's Ned, Dad." is all he said, as they approached the bus. He pointed out his teacher and let his dad and Steve wander over there while he walked over to Ned and MJ, who both immediately hugged him at the same time. 

"Dude. You did so good." Ned said, while MJ just nodded in agreement. He blushed slightly at her, thinking of the kiss they shared not to long ago. 

"Thanks, man." Peter said with a shrug, and they both pulled back, looking pointedly over at his dad who had his phone pressed to his ear while Steve watched in amusement as Mr. Harrington stuttered in shock. 

"My dad's gonna get your parents permission to have you fly home with us." Peter said with a shrug while Ned let out an excited squeal. MJ just raised an eyebrow. 

"So it's true then. Stark's your dad? Your real dad?" MJ asked, her face looked like she didn't care but from her tone he knew she was curious. 

"Yeah, he's my real dad. It's a long story, I'll tell you on the ride home, come on." he said, pointing to Tony who was waving them all over with a thumbs up. 

"I'm riding home with Ironman and Captain America." Ned said in disbelief, to which Peter just laughed. 

"You've been to my house like a million times, Ned." he laughed, but Ned just shrugged. 

"It's never gonna get old, Peter. Just deal with my excitement." Ned argued as they reached his dad, who immediately flung his arm around his shoulder as he lead them to a new quinjet that was waiting in a field nearby. 

\---

Peter was sitting in the back of the car that Happy picked them up in after they dropped MJ and Ned off, leaving the quinjet at the compound. They were headed, slowly in Peter's opinion, back to the lake house. Peter bounced his knee up and down repeatedly as he stared unseeingly out of the car window. He knew his mom was okay, his dad had said so, but ever since the illusions he was still having a hard time picking out what was real and what wasn't. He needed to see her with his own eyes. 

"Pete." his dad's voice jarred him from his thoughts along with the soft hand that stopped his leg's movements. He looked over to see his dad watching him with worry, his eyebrows furrowed. Steve was snoring against his shoulder, but his dad seemed to be ignoring the giant super soldier using him as a pillow. 

"I'm fine." Peter said, shaking his head. His dad just raised an unimpressed eyebrow, his lips down turned in a frown. Peter sighed. 

"It's nothing, I'm just having trouble remembering that the illusions weren't real." he finally admitted in a whisper. His dad's eyes widened a bit in understanding. He let out a soft hum and brushed his fingers through Peter's hair. 

"Your mom and sister are just fine. I talked to Mom like an hour ago, bug." his dad's voice was soft a soothing, his hand still brushing through his curls. Peter nodded, blinking a few times to keep the tears at bay. 

"I know. I just-I need to see it with my own eyes, you know?" Peter said then with a shrug, and his dad nodded pressing a kiss to his forehead and bringing him closer to where his head was now resting on his shoulder like Steve. Peter fell asleep quickly, listening to the comforting sound of his dad's heartbeat. 

"Petey, we're home." his dad's hand was squeezing his shoulder softly. Peter sat up quickly, blinking hard. He eyed the cabin with trepidation, before his dad slung an arm over his shoulder. 

"Come on, I know there's some lovely ladies in there who want to see you. And your mom and sister are in there too." his dad joked with a wink, referring to Bucky and Rhodey. Peter gave him a half smile, nerves exploding in his stomach, but he followed his dad anyway. 

The second they were past the threshold, he was bombarded with a hug by a flash of light red hair, and he felt everything inside him melt at the feeling. He wrapped his hands around his mom and smiled. 

"Mama." he breathed out in relief, and his mom just squeezed him tighter in response, before finally pulling away and looking up at him with tears in her eyes. 

"I'm so glad you're okay, детка." his mom whispered, squeezing his shoulders. He smiled down at her and reveled in the fact that she was in fact alive and breathing right in front of him. 

"Thanks, Mama." he said back after a few seconds. His mom furrowed her eyebrows a little at the tightness in his voice, and gave him a look that said they would discuss that later, before she grabbed his arm and lead him further into the house. 

"Your sister has missed you. She's been chanting PeePee all day." his mom said with a laugh, leading him to the living room. The moment his little sister saw him from Bucky's arms, she squealed. 

"PeePee!" she squealed, making grabby hand towards him. He sped over quickly and swept her up into his arms, squeezing her tightly, causing her to giggle. 

"Hey Maria, I missed you loads." Peter said to her, earning him some babbling in return. He laughed and pressed a raspberry kiss to her cheek, causing more giggles. 

"See Pete, all good here. Rhodey and Bucky seem to be competent at something at least." his dad spoke up, smirking over at the two men who were now standing by the couch. Bucky just flipped him off with his metal hand, and Rhodey just rolled his eyes. 

"Says the King of Incompetence." Rhodey said then, walking over and ruffling Peter's hair. 

"You did a good job, kid." he said over Tony's protests over his words. Peter smiled and shrugged. 

"Yeah kid, you are welcome on the Avengers whenever you want. You've got some serious skills." Bucky spoke up then, offering him a high five, which he happily returned. 

"I agree." Steve said quietly from the doorway where he still seemed to be waking up from the drive. Peter blushed, and turned his attention to his parents who were smiling at him proudly. 

"While I'm all for that, I think the kid deserves a break from saving the day for a bit. Why don't we get some dinner going?" Tony said, breaking the moment with a clap of his hands. Bucky perked up at the mention of food at turned to Steve with puppy dog eyes. Steve just stared at him, unimpressed, which earned a grumble from the man. 

"Are we invited?" Bucky then turned his puppy dog eyes to his parents. Natasha rolled her eyes fondly and nodded. 

"Of course. Who else is going to chop the vegetables? Come on Barnes, you're now my cooking assistant." she replied with a wink, and Bucky happily followed her to the kitchen like a lost puppy. His dad just watched the scene with a fond crinkle in the corner of his eyes. 

"Alright, the rest of you can make yourselves comfortable. Me and Pete are going to go give Little Miss a bath, she's still dirty from her trip to Gerald's enclosure today." Tony said, giving the evil eye to Rhodey, who shrugged. 

"She's your kid." Rhodey said, putting his hands up in surrender. Tony just rolled his eyes and motioned for Peter to follow him.

Peter smiled, forever grateful that the illusions were wrong, and that his family was safe and as unconventional as ever. 

  
\---

"You can put me down now! You can put me down now!" he heard MJ shout in his ear, so he quickly webbed down to the side walk and put her down as gently as he could. 

"You okay?" he asks as he watches her stumble back slightly as her feet touch the ground. She nods quickly moving her hair out of her face. 

"Whoo…Yeah! Yeah, I'm okay. Just...Never, never doing that again. I'm never doing that again." she stumbled through her words as she took a couple deep breaths. Peter laughed. 

"Okay. Well, I should probably get out of here. It's family game night, and we're playing Monopoly." Peter said, and MJ let out a snort. 

"You're playing Monopoly with the former CEO of a billion dollar company and a former Russian spy?" MJ asked, her eyebrows raised in judgement. Peter just shrugged. 

"Steve will be there too." he tries, earning another snort from MJ as she shakes her head. 

"Cause that evens the playing field." she mumbles, and he laughs again before waving at her. 

"Be safe." she shouts as he webs to a nearby lamp post. He sends her another wave when suddenly the giant screen across the street lights up. 

"This is breaking news." the voice says, and Peter stays where he's at, glancing down at MJ who is looking at him in concern. 

"We come to you now with revelations about last week's attack in London. An anonymous source provided this video, it shows Quentin Beck, aka, Mysterio, moments before his death. A warning, you may find this video disturbing." the man on the screen says, and Peter feels his stomach sink at the words, he wants to web away but he's frozen to the spot. He watches at the camera cuts to a video of Beck on the ground on the bridge, his face a bloody mess. 

"I managed to send the Elemental back into the dimensional rift, but I don't think I'm gonna make it off this bridge alive. Spider-Man attacked me for some reason. He has an army of weaponized drones, Stark technology. He's saying he's the only one who's gonna be the new Iron Man, no one else." Beck says, acting as if he was truly shocked by this news. He can feel MJ's gaze fly to him, as well as thousands of others who have stopped on the street to look up at him. The scene changes again, and Peter knows this was somehow fabricated. 

"Are you sure you want to commence the drone attack? There will be significant casualties." he hears the EDITH glasses ask him. He knows that's not what she asked him, he knows it. His breathing picks up at the words that come out of his mouth on the screen. 

"Do it! Execute them all!" he hears his voice say, and he suddenly can't feel his face, his whole body feels like pins and needles. He needed to get out of here, people were starting to stare. He is about to swing away when the man comes back on the screen. 

"This shocking video was released earlier today on the controversial news website, 'TheDailyBugle.net.'" the man says, cutting to the head of The Daily Bugle. 

"There you have it, folks. Conclusive proof that Spider-Man was responsible for the brutal murder of Mysterio! An inter-dimensional warrior who gave his life to protect our planet, and who will no doubt go down in history as the greatest superhero of all time. But that's not all, folks. Here's the real blockbuster. Brace yourselves, you might wanna sit down." the man says, and the scene changed back to Beck again, injured on the bridge. 

"Spider-Man's real... Spider-Man's real name is... Spider-Man's name is Peter Parker!" Quentin chokes out, and if Peter wasn't freaking out before, he certainly was now. He watches as his school photo crosses the screen, and he can suddenly hear everything around him too loudly. He knew he was having a sensory overload attack, so he quickly webbed away, finding an abandoned building as far away from people as he could before he dropped to his knees with a gasp. 

"Peter, your vitals are reaching dangerous levels. Would you like me to contact Mr. Stark?" KAREN's voice fills his ears, and he nods since he is still currently choking on his own breath. He can hear KAREN dialing the number and his dad's voice picking up, but it all sounds muffled like he was underwater. The last thing he remembers is hearing the familiar sound of repulsors, before everything went dark. 

\---

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay....what did you think? Please let me know in the comments if you liked it. 
> 
> Now this is the last movie I will do, unless Black Widow finally comes out at some point and I can think of how to incorporate that. But for now this is it! I might still do some slices of life and bonus scenes if you guys want me to!
> 
> Also if you want more of this lovely family, check out my prequel "darkness still remains" which is about Tony and Nat's relationship. 
> 
> PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT. And thank you so much for reading and leaving comments and kudos, I can't believe so many of you have read and enjoyed my story. It means so much to me. THANK YOU!

**Author's Note:**

> Leave a comment!


End file.
